The Toronto stock market headed higher Monday as traders took in a multibillion-dollar offer for a Canadian miner and a Statistics Canada report that showed the economy grew faster than expected in December.
The S&P/TSX composite index held onto gains of 84.37 points to close at 14,136.50
The Canadian dollar picked up 0.78 cents to 102.9 cents U.S.
In corporate news, shares in Lundin Mining Corp. soared over 19% or $1.23 to $7.68 after Equinox Minerals Ltd. confirmed that it will make an offer to acquire the Vancouver-based miner for $4.8 billion in cash and shares.
Equinox said late Sunday that Lundin shareholders can choose between $8.10 per share in cash, which is a 26% premium to Friday’s closing price of $6.45, or 1.2903 Equinox shares plus one cent for each Lundin share. Equinox closed 54 cents or 8.6% lower at $5.73.
The news comes less than a month after Lundin agreed to a merger of equals with Inmet Mining Corp. aimed at creating a new company called Symterra Corp., with shareholder votes scheduled for March 14.
Inmet shares 35 cents lower at $66.95
RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust reported fourth-quarter profits rose 551% to $179.4 million, from $27.5 million a year ago, as it benefited from a one-time non-cash reversal on future income taxes worth $150 million. Units in the trust added 40 cents to $24.18.
Quadra FNX Mining Ltd. shares gained 5.2% or 70 cents to $14.22 after it reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $57.9 million U.S. or 30 cents per diluted share, compared with $46.5 million U.S. or 46 cents in the same 2009 period. Revenues for the three months ended Dec. 31 were $331.9 million U.S., up from $176.1 million U.S.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada said the GDP grew at an annualized rate of 3.3% in the fourth quarter after expanding 1.8% in the third quarter. That was significantly stronger than the 2.3% pace the Bank of Canada expected in December.
For the full year, Canada’s gross domestic product grew 3.1% in 2010 after a 2.5% decline in 2009 during one of the worst recessions in decades.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange tacked on 15.92 points to 2,391.54, while the Nasdaq Canada index grew 4.57 points to 820.53.
In Toronto, all but two of the 14 subgroups remained on a positive footing at the close. The metals and mining group surged 1.8%, while real-estate climbed 1.3% and energy was 1.1% more energetic.
Consumer discretionaries declined 0.5%, while health-care stocks dipped 0.3% Monday.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, following its worst week since August, the Dow Jones industrial average got a boost Monday, after a government report showed Americans are earning and saving more.
The Dow Jones industrial average was 95.89 points higher to close at 12,226.30.
The S&P 500 was up 7.34 points to 1,327.22. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index moved up 1.22 points to 2,782.27.
Humana shares rose 3.8% after the company announced the Department of Defense awarded the health insurer a major contract, covering military personnel and their families in the South.
UnitedHealth Group had previously held the contract, and its shares were flat Monday.
Kenneth Cole Productions shares tumbled 9.2% Monday, after the high-end clothing company announced its CEO Jill Granoff is stepping down, effective immediately. The company posted a loss of $2.7 million U.S. in the fourth quarter, an improvement over a $52-million U.S. loss in the year-ago quarter.
The fashion house's namesake had recently come under fire in the social media sphere, for tweeting a promotion that joked about protests in Egypt.
Shares of Overstock.com soared 10%, after the online retailer announced earnings that beat Wall Street estimates.
3M gained 1.9%, after a Barrons article reported the company will launch a "blizzard" of new products and soon see rising sales in international markets. Over the weekend, 3M CEO George
Buckley slammed President Obama as "anti-business," calling his policies "Robin Hood-esque."
Leading the Nasdaq lower, First Solar Inc. shares fell 5.3% and Netflix shares fell 3.9%. Amazon shares fell more than 2.4%, after UBS downgraded its stock to "neutral."
Auction house Sotheby's will report after the market close.
Economically speaking, a report from the Commerce Department showed that personal income jumped 1%, while spending by individuals rose 0.2% in January.
Economists were looking for personal incomes to rise 0.3%, and the personal spending figure was expected to go up 0.4%.
Later in the morning, a report on Chicago-area manufacturing showed that sector accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace in February. The Chicago PMI rose to 71.2 from 68.8 in January, although economists had expected a slight decline.
A report on the housing market came in slightly better than expected, showing pending home sales fell 2.8% instead of the deeper 3.2% fall economists had been forecasting.
Economic data due later this week include the national PMI from Institute for Supply Management on Tuesday, and the government's monthly payroll report on Friday.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 3.41% from 3.59% late Friday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery faded 86 cents to $97.02 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for April delivery rose 60 cents to settle at $1,409.90 U.S. an ounce.
