Stocks enjoyed healthy gains on Thursday, on hopes that Washington was moving closer to ending the fiscal impasse that has kept markets under pressure.
The S&P/TSX composite index moved up 124.41, or 1%, to start the day at 12,854.74
The Canadian dollar regained 0.09 cents to 96.29 cents U.S.
The Bangladesh garment factory hit by a fire that killed at least nine people and injured some 50 more on Tuesday had manufactured clothing for western retailers including Hudson's Bay Co., whose stock began Thursday 10 cents at $17.78.
Kinross Gold Corp. said on Wednesday its Dvoinoye gold mine in Russia, where the Canadian miner already operates the Kupol mine, had started commercial production. Kinross shares dipped three cents to $4.93.
Rogers Communications Inc. said it restored all wireless voice services and some messaging capabilities after it experienced an outage across the country. Rogers shares took on 54 cents to $45.72.
On things economic, Statistics Canada reported housing prices were higher 0.1% in August, following a 0.2% increase in July.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 2.16 points to 935.20
All 14 Toronto subgroups gained ground in the first hour, led by health-care, haler by 1.6%, while the metals and mining sector tied with energy, each group tacking on 1.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rallied Thursday morning on reports that lawmakers could be close to striking a short-term deal that would keep the United States from defaulting on its debt.
The Dow spiked 186.76 points, or 1.3%, to begin Thursday at 14,989.70
The S&P 500 index gained 21.14 points to 1,677.54. The NASDAQ rocketed back up 58.42 points to 3,736.20
Shares of Citrix Systems sank more than 10%, after the software company released its third-quarter results early, saying it expected earnings and revenue to come in lower than previously anticipated.
Shares of the largest U.S. banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Goldman Sachs, rose more than 1%. JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo will report their latest quarterly earnings on Friday morning.
House Republican members and party leadership sources told the media that leaders are working on a proposal to raise the debt ceiling temporarily, while the government would remain partially shut down.
Investors have been growing increasingly concerned as October 17th, a key deadline to increase the debt ceiling, comes closer. Should politicians fail to raise the debt ceiling, the U.S. is likely to default on some of its debt or could be forced to choose between interest payments on the debt and paying for key government services.
Investors saw one sign that should make them uneasy about the jobs market in the U.S., but they seemed content to ignore it Thursday.
The U.S. Labor Department's weekly report on initial jobless claims showed a sharp jump in claims over the previous week. The government did not release its monthly jobs report last week due to the shutdown.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury slumped, raising yields to 2.71% from Wednesday’s 2.65%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices eked higher by eight cents to $101.69 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices sagged $7.90 to $1,299.30 U.S. an ounce.
