Stocks in Toronto opened higher on Monday, tracking global equities following another rate cut by China's central bank, with most sectors to the good.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 45.03 points to begin the week at 15,215.05
The Canadian dollar inched up 0.03 cents to 82.82 cents U.S.
Metals stocks were an early leader Monday morning, with HudBay Minerals improving 22 cents, or 1.8%, to $12.32.
Consumer staples also performed well, with Cott Corp. gaining 50 cents, or 4.6%, to $11.38.
Also improving were utilities, most notably Algonquin Power & Utilities up 26 cents, or 2.7%, to $9.89.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange picked up 3.06 points to 694.21
All but one of the 14 Toronto subgroups were ahead in the first hour, with metals and mining up 1.1%, consumer staples up 0.9%, and utilities better by 0.8%.
Only energy stocks missed the party, and only 0.04% at that.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded in a narrow range on Monday, following a strong rally on Friday's jobs report, as investors awaited the week's data releases.
The Dow Jones Industrials eased back 10.67 points, after a massive jump on Friday, to begin today’s trading at 18,180.44, with Cisco leading gains and Intel the greatest laggard.
The S&P 500 index moved downward 0.14 points to 2,115.96, with consumer discretionary leading six sectors higher and energy the greatest decliner.
The NASDAQ eked up 6.8 points to 5,010.35
Cisco Systems jumped more than 1.5% in the open. Pacific Crest upgraded the networking equipment maker to "overweight" from "sector weight," citing the beginning of a multi-quarter recovery driven by new product cycles.
Dish Network saw revenue rise 3.6% in its latest quarter, compared to a year ago, even though overall subscriber numbers dropped. The satellite TV operator now makes an average $86.01 U.S. per subscriber compared to $82.36 U.S. a year ago.
Actavis reported adjusted quarterly profit of $4.30 U.S. per share, above estimates of $3.93 U.S, with revenue also above Street forecasts on higher sales of its branded drugs in North America.
Rosetta Resources will be acquired by fellow energy producer Noble Energy in an all-stock transaction valued at $2.1 billion U.S. Rosetta shareholders will receive 0.542 Noble shares for each share they now hold, an implied value of $26.62 U.S. per share.
Hilton Worldwide announced a 90-million-share secondary offering, with the shares coming from stockholders affiliated with Blackstone Group. Hilton will not receive any proceeds from the offering.
Sotheby's reported adjusted quarterly profit of seven cents U.S. per share, beating expectations for a breakeven quarter. Revenue also exceeded forecasts, as auction sales and commissions rose compared to a year earlier.
No major economic news or earnings reports are expected Monday. Retail sales and industrial production figures come out later in the week. Yields edged higher, stabilizing after a rapid rally last week. The dollar edged slightly higher, with the euro at $1.114 U.S. Oil held near recent highs.
Europe is in focus as the euro-zone finance ministers meet on Monday and Greece faces a payment deadline to the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday.
European equities were lower Monday, pausing after a rally on Friday, and overlooking the news that China has cut interest rates for the third time in six months.
The People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced the cut in its benchmark lending rate and one-year deposit rates by 25 basis points on Sunday, as growth in the Asian economic giant slowed to levels not seen since the global financial crisis.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries sagged, raising yields to 2.19% from Friday’s 2.14%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices added 22 cents to $59.61 U.S.
Gold prices gained 60 cents to $1,189.50 U.S.
