The Toronto stock market started off the week on the right foot amid comments from China about the pace of that country’s economic growth.
The S&P/TSX composite was up 21.70 points at 12,218.50
The Canadian dollar poked up 0.02 cents to 100.04 cents U.S.
Comments by China's two top banking officials playing down the risks of bad debt in the banking system provided the latest upbeat signal from Beijing suggesting seven straight quarters of slowing growth have ended.
Research In Motion Ltd said that it planned to introduce its long-delayed BlackBerry 10 platform and devices on January 30. The news resulted in a hike for RIM shares of 25 cents to $8.81 soon after the open.
The Offshore rig group Seadrill has signed a $1.18-billion, five-year deal with Husky Energy Inc. to provide a newly built harsh environment rig for operations in Canada and Greenland. Husky shares ditched 26 cents to $27.50
Ensign Energy Services Inc. said its third-quarter profit fell 30% as it was hurt by reduced demand for its services in North America and higher costs. Ensign shares added 24 cents to $14.65
Celtic Exploration Ltd which is being acquired by Exxon Mobil Corp, reported a wider third-quarter loss due to lower natural gas prices. Celtic stock nipped up two cents to open the week at $26.08
With government agencies closed for Remembrance Day, no macroeconomic figures were released Monday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 5.15 points to 1,306.07
All but two of the 14 Toronto subgroups were higher at the open. Information technology perked 0.5%, with global base metals and their cousins in the metals and mining growing 0.4% each.
The two laggards were gold, off 0.3%, and materials, skidding 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks eked out modest gains Monday, bouncing back from last week's steep losses, as investors turned their attention to Europe and Greece.
The Dow Jones Industrials opened the week ahead 8.38 points at 12,823.80
The S&P 500 moved up 3.20 to 1,383.05, and the Nasdaq Composite Index strengthened 7.15 points to 2,912.50
Finance ministers from the 17 euro-zone countries will meet in Brussels later Monday to discuss Greece's economic reforms.
Over the weekend, Greece's parliament approved the nation's 2013 budget. The vote was a big step toward unfreezing international bailout funds, even though disagreement among its creditors could push back the timetable for when that aid will resume.
Back home, U.S. President Obama said Friday that he will meet with Republican and Democratic leaders this week to discuss the situation, and investors will be watching closely for any new developments.
Homebuilders DR Horton and Beazer Homes both reported fiscal fourth quarter earnings before the opening bell.
DR Horton shares rose after it reported a stronger-than-expected profit. Meanwhile, Beazer Homes posted a quarterly loss of $2.57 per share, falling short of analyst expectations, but the company beat estimates on revenue.
Homebuilders have recently benefited from signs of a gradual housing recovery. DR Horton shares have been on a tear, rising 77% over the last year, and Beazer shares are up 50% over a year ago.
Jefferies Group shares surged after the securities firm agreed to merge with Leucadia National in an all-stock deal.
Shares of Gilead Sciences climbed after the biotechnology giant announced encouraging findings about hepatitis C drugs.
Research in Motion shares edged higher after the company announced it will launch its BlackBerry 10 on January 30.
The Treasury market is closed in observance of Veterans’ Day
Oil prices inched ahead three cents to $86.10 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices jumped $4.60 an ounce to $1,735.50 U.S.
