Equities in Canada’s biggest market moved to the positive side Wednesday, buoyed by strong resource and energy shares.
The S&P/TSX Composite jumped 55.12 points to get back to the business after Christmas at 15,383.27
The Canadian dollar sank 0.26 cents to 73.68 cents U.S.
Markets in Toronto were shuttered Monday and Tuesday for Christmas and Boxing Day.
Among material stocks, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan added 70 cents, or 2.9%, to $25.10, while First Quantum Minerals gained 34 cents, or 2.5%, to $14.17.
Gold stocks improved, most notably, Goldcorp, ahead 43 cents, or 2.5%, to $17.47, while Barrick Gold soared 31 cents, or 1.6%, to $20.00.
Health-care issues faded, mostly Valeant Pharmaceuticals, down 25 cents, or 1.3%, to $19.13.
Savanna Energy Services Corp said on Friday its board unanimously rejected an unsolicited buyout offer from fellow oilfield services provider Total Energy Services Inc as it "significantly" undervalued the shares of the company.
Savanna shares tacked on two cents, or 1%, to $1.98.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 7.7 points, or 1.1%, to 735.83
The 12 TSX subgroups were evenly divided between gainers and losers, as materials hiked 1.2%, gold jumped 1.9%, and information technology hoisted 0.8%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed mostly by real-estate and health-care stocks, each off 0.6%, while utilities backtracked 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks turned negative Wednesday with investors watching oil and keeping an eye on the Dow Jones industrial average's elusive 20,000-point mark.
The Dow dropped 17.68 points in Wednesday’s first hour to 19,927.36, buoyed by Goldman Sachs and Chevron, each up half a percentage point.
The S&P 500 put down 7.93 points to 2,260.95
The NASDAQ composite index subtracted 28.7 points to 5,458.79
On the data front, pending home sales fell, driving the National Association of Realtors Home Sales Index down 2.5% in November from October. Consensus forecasts called for a 0.4% increase in home sale contracts signed but not yet closed, following a 0.1% rise in October.
The Treasury Department will be auctioning $34 billion in five-year notes at 1 p.m. ET.
Oil prices opened higher Wednesday morning, close to their mid-2015 peaks. The market anticipated tighter supply and the first output cut deal between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and non-OPEC producers in 15 years, which is set to take effect Sunday.
Treasury prices for the 10-year note were higher, lowering yields to 2.55% from Tuesday’s 2.56%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices eked up eight cents to $53.98 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained 30 cents to $1,139.10 U.S. an ounce.
