Equities in Toronto stayed positive by noon hour on Tuesday, led by the financial and energy groups as oil and bond yields climbed, while shares of BlackBerry Ltd advanced after the company posted better-than-expected earnings.
The S&P/TSX Composite held onto 13.23 points worth of gains to greet noon hour at 15,283.08
The Canadian dollar remained negative 0.21 cents to 74.76 cents U.S.
The Canadian smartphone pioneer, which has gone through a wrenching transition in recent years, reported adjusted earnings of two cents a share, which came in ahead of analysts' expectations for a loss of one cent a share.
BlackBerry shares rose 2.2% to $10.57, while shares of label and packaging maker CCL Industries Inc surged 16.6% to $264.50.
CCL said on Monday it would acquire the U.K.-based Innovia Group of companies for about $1.13 billion.
Financials gained, with Toronto-Dominion Bank advancing 0.4% to $66.98 and Manulife Financial rising nearly 1% to $24.70.
The materials group dipped with Franco-Nevada Corp falling more than 4% to $73.60 and Barrick Gold down 1.5% at $18.81.
Amaya Inc founder David Baazov said he had ended talks to buy the Canadian online gambling company because some shareholders were demanding a higher premium.
The company's shares fell 3.3% to $18.74.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that wholesale trade increased 1.1% to $56.6 billion in October, offsetting most of September's 1.5% decrease.
The agency said gains were recorded in five sub-sectors, led by higher sales in the building material and supplies, motor vehicle and parts, and food, beverage and tobacco sub-sectors.
Meantime, the number of Canadians drawing regular employment insurance benefits numbered 575,200 in the same month, down 2,700, or 0.5%, from September.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange continued its downward journey, doffing 7.93 points, or 1.1%, to 712.81
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower at noon hour, with gold flopping 1.5%, telecoms wilting 0.6%, and consumer discretionary falling 0.5%.
The five gainers were led by financials, up 0.5%, information technology, up 0.3%, and health-care, up 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities traded higher on Tuesday as investors remained unfazed by geopolitical tensions, while the Dow Jones industrial average kept marching toward the 20,000-point mark
The Dow Jones Industrials came off its highs of the morning, but still approached noon positive 69.7 points to 19,952.76, with Caterpillar leading advancers and Merck the top decliner.
The S&P 500 gained 6.07 points to 2,268.60, with consumer discretionary leading eight sectors higher and consumer staples the biggest decliner.
The NASDAQ composite index added 21.58 points to 5,479.02, also reaching a new all-time high earlier in the session.
There are no major economic data due Tuesday, but investors had several earnings reports to dwell on, with the likes of Darden Restaurants, General Mills and BlackBerry all reporting before the bell. FedEx and Nike are also scheduled to report after the close.
Analysts polled by Reuters expect Dow-component Nike to report earnings per share of 43 cents U.S. on sales of $8.1 billion. FedEx is expected to post profits of $2.90 per share on revenue of $14.92 billion U.S.
On Monday, the Russian ambassador to Turkey died after being shot by a gunman at an art gallery in the Turkish capital. Meanwhile, in Berlin, a truck ploughed into a crowded Christmas market, killing 12 and injuring 48.
Treasury prices for the 10-year note moved backward, hiking yields to 2.56% from Monday’s 2.53%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices stayed afloat 20 cents to $52.32 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices dipped $10.20 to $1,132.50 U.S. an ounce.
