Stocks in Toronto rallied more than 1% shortly after the open as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc shares rebounded after being battered by charges of price gauging and as higher-than-expected domestic growth data also gave other sectors a healthy boost.
The S&P/TSX composite index advanced 136.88 points, or 1.1%, to open at 13,173.84
The Canadian dollar hiked 0.21 cents at 74.71 cents U.S.
Barclays adjusted price target on Empire Company Ltd to $29.00 to reflect the company’s previously announced three-for-one stock split. The parent company of grocer Sobeys saw its shares bolt 52 cents higher, of 1.9%, to $27.36.
AGF Management is due out with Q3 earnings today, projecting 16 Canadian cents per share. AGF shares acquired 20 cents, or 3.9%, to $5.36.
Valeant shares rocketed $11.08, or 5.2%, to $223.14.
On the economic calendar, the economy grew in July. Statistics Canada says Gross Domestic Product picked up 0.3% during the month, after rising in June 0.4%, thus ending a five-month losing streak.
The nation’s number-crunchers attribute the increase in July to mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction, manufacturing, and the finance and insurance sector.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved up 1.86 points to 525.49
All but one of the 13 TSX subgroups were higher at the beginning, with industrials, consumer discretionaries, and utilities each up 1.3%.
Only gold was negative, and 1.3% at that.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded sharply higher Wednesday, following global markets higher in an attempt to ease the pain of the worst quarter in four years.
The Dow Jones industrial average grew 231 points, or 1.4%, to 16,280.13, with Intel leading all blue chips higher
The S&P 500 gained 30.01 points, or 1.6%, to 1,914.10, with energy leading all 10 sectors higher.
The NASDAQ index zoomed 77.76 points, or 1.7%, to 4,595.08, Apple gained more than 1%.
Wednesday is the last day of September and the final day of the third quarter, the worst since 2011 according to Barclays. The major U.S. averages are on track for a quarterly loss of more than 7%.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is expected to give the opening remarks at a Community Banking Research and Policy Conference at 3 p.m. ET in St. Louis, Missouri. Last week the Fed chief suggested that the central bank was still likely to lift interest rates before year-end.
Ahead of Friday's key non-farm payrolls data, the September ADP Employment report showed private companies added 200,000 jobs.
The September Chicago purchasing managers’ index came in at 48.7, below expectations of 53.0.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries lost some ground, raising yields to 2.07% from Tuesday’s 2.06%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained 19 cents a barrel to $45.42 U.S.
Gold prices slumbered $12.12 to $1,115.31 U.S. an ounce.
