Markets in Toronto grew their earlier gains Thursday, driven by the extended rally in telecom and health-care shares and by the reduction in losses from the materials sector.
The S&P/TSX composite index moved higher 64.93 points to close Thursday at 15,088.82
The Canadian dollar plummeted 0.51 cents to 82.51 cents U.S.
Telecoms were still in lead in the positive territory, due to the continued support of Manitoba Telecom Services, which hiked $1.50, or 5.9%, to $27.15. Meanwhile, rival Telus rose 68 cents, or 1.6%, to $42.70 on the back of a 10% increase in quarterly earnings.
In the consumer discretionary area, Linamar Corporation ended the day ahead $10.40, or 14.3%, to $83.39.
Among health-care stocks, Valeant Pharmaceuticals took on $4.50, or 1.7%, to $264.70
On the negative side remained the energy and materials sectors that continued take a beating from falling commodity prices.
Anong energy issues, Enerflex was pummeled $1.25, or 8%, to $14.35, while in the materials sector, CCL Industries leaped $12.72, or 9.1%, to $152.08.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada came out with building permits news this morning, which reported that the total value rose 11.6% from a month earlier to $6.9 billion in March. This was the first increase in three months.
The agency goes on to say higher construction intentions for non-residential buildings in British Columbia and Alberta, and for multi-family dwellings in Ontario and B.C., were responsible for much of the advance.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved lower 1.46 points to 685.54
Nine of the 14 Toronto subgroups were in positive country, with telecom stocks rising 2%, consumer discretionaries up 1.7%, and materials surging 1.4%
The five laggards were weighed mostly by energy, which trailed 2%, metals and mining, down 0.5%, and consumer staples, sliding 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday as investors awaited the key April jobs report and eyed easing in oil prices and bond yields
The Dow Jones Industrials surged 82.08 points to close Thursday at 17,924.06, with Home Depot leading gains and Exxon Mobil and Caterpillar the greatest laggards.
The S&P 500 index moved upward 7.87 points to 2,088.02, with financials and information technology leading nine sectors higher energy the only decliner.
The NASDAQ grew 25.90 points to 4,945.54.
Yelp surged 23%, extending gains after a halt in trading, after Dow Jones reported the restaurant and entertainment listings and ratings site was exploring a sale.
Alibaba jumped 7.5%, its best day ever, after reporting earnings of an adjusted 48 cents U.S. per share for its latest quarter, six cents above estimates, and revenue also beat Street forecasts. Alibaba also announced that Chief Operation Officer Daniel Zhang will become
CEO as of May 10.
Priceline Group slid 4% despite posting quarterly profit of an adjusted $8.12 U.S. per share, above estimates of $7.72 U.S, with revenue also beating consensus. The online travel services site cited strong growth in bookings for hotel rooms and rental cars, among other factors.
Procter & Gamble ended off 0.25%.The firm's hair care business—valued up to $5 billion U.S. —is drawing interest from a variety of private equity firms, according to the New York Post.
Costco closed down 0.2% after reporting flat same-store sales for April, compared to estimates of a 0.3% increase.
Investors also eyed several U.S. data points ahead of the bell, including weekly U.S. jobless claims, which came in much weaker than expected.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 3,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 265,000 for the week ended May 2, the U.S. Labor Department said on Thursday. Claims for the prior week were unrevised at 262,000, which was the lowest reading since April 2000.
One commentator said this number could be a sign that Friday's jobs report for April could come in better than expected. In March, the U.S. added 126,000 jobs versus and expected 245,000.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained ground, dropping yields to 2.18% from Wednesday’s 2.24%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices eased $2.15 to $58.78 U.S.
Gold prices slid $8.20 to $1,182.10 U.S.
