The Toronto stock market was higher Tuesday, as commodity prices improved despite a weaker-than-expected report on Canada’s economic growth and continuing concerns over European debt.
The S&P TSX Composite Index ended the day ahead 57.23 points to close at 12,952.88, despite enjoying much of the day atop the 13,000 mark.
The loonie settled back 0.82 cents to 97.39 cents U.S.
In the gold patch, giant Barrick Gold Corp. added $1.72 to $52.91 on higher gold prices.
Shares in info tech market heavyweight Research In Motion jumped 5.4% or $3.24 to $63.25 after receiving a "buy" rating from a financial analyst on the expectation of very healthy demand for the highly anticipated BlackBerry tablet, due out in January.
Mining stocks gained on higher base metals prices. Shares in diversified miner Teck Resource gained $1.71 to $51.01.
Montreal-based Mega Brands Inc. shares gained three cents to 62 cents apiece after it announced is teaming up with Electronic Arts Inc. to develop a version of the Mega Bloks construction toys based on EA’s "Need for Speed" video game franchise.
The financial sector was positive in advance of bank earnings season, which kicks off this week.
The National Bank of Canada was to release its fourth-quarter earnings after markets close Tuesday. Shares in National Bank gave back 89 cents to $67.84 after being bolstered last week by expectations it may be the first big bank to raise its dividend since the recession.
Shares in Toronto-Dominion Bank, which reports later this week, faded 14 cents to $74.69.
A Statistics Canada report that found gross domestic product rose at an annualized 1% in the third quarter, much lower than the 1.4% growth economists had been expecting.
But experts say that wasn’t a drag on the TSX because investors were instead focused on positive data from south of the border
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX/Venture Exchange advanced 21.64 points to 2,072.44, while the Nasdaq Canada index hiked 17.70 points to 746.52
In Toronto, consumer discretionaries and global base metals ended the day flat. The rest of the 14 subgroups were evenly split.
Gold towered above the half-dozen gainers, up 2.5%, while materials soared 2.2% and information technology stocks picked up 1.4%.
Real-estate losses of 0.6% weighed heaviest among the six laggards, while financials and utilities were off 0.5% each.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks started November with a bang but ended it with a whimper as all three major indexes closed the day and month lower Tuesday.
A stronger-than-expected report on consumer confidence muffled some losses Tuesday, but the market couldn't fully recover from a weak housing report and concerns about Europe's economy.
The Dow Jones Industrials fell 46.47 points to end the day at 11,006
The S&P 500 was down 7.21 points to 1,180.55. The Nasdaq Composite Index backtracked 26.99 points to 2,498.23.
It was a downbeat end to what started out as a strong month. The Dow and Nasdaq shot to two-year highs in early November after the Republican success in the Congressional election and the Federal Reserve's announcement of a second round of economy-boosting asset purchases.
Google's stock was down more than 4% after the European Commission said it will investigate whether the Internet search company violated antitrust rules. Search service providers allege that Google gives its own services preferential placement on searches.
News reports also said Google is looking to acquire the discount coupon retailer Groupon. The New York Times' DealBook blog reported Google may be bidding as much as $6 billion U.S. for Groupon.
In the economic arena, the Conference Board's index of consumer confidence rose more than expected to 54.1 in November, from 50.2 in October. Economists expected the index to come in at 52.
Elsewhere, the Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 major U.S. markets came in with some bad news for the housing market: Home prices fell 2% in third quarter, after mostly steady gains since early 2009. Economists expected prices to rise 1% in September, according to a consensus of economists by Briefing.com.
A measure of manufacturing in the Chicago area is expected to show that activity slowed slightly in November. Economists expect the November reading of Chicago PMI to fall to 59.6 from 60.6 in October. Any index reading over 50 indicates expansion.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury inched up, lowering the yield to 2.80% from 2.82% late Monday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil jettisoned $1.84 a barrel to $84.05 U.S. The price of gold hiked $17 an ounce to $1,383 U.S.
