Markets in Canada’s largest centre scored major gains Thursday, as tech issues such as BlackBerry
The S&P/TSX Composite Index leaped 120 points to close the month’s first session at 15,469.91
The Canadian dollar erased 0.15 cents at 73.95 cents U.S.
BlackBerry was among the most influential gainers, jumping $1.16, or 8.1%, to $15.44, after Citron Research said it had a 24-month price target of $20.00 on the stock on expectations the software company will profit from the increasing application of its security and other software technology in various industries, such as automotive.
In the health-care sector, Canopy Growth Corp. copped a dime, or 1.3%, to $7.55, while Valeant Pharmaceuticals leaped 63 cents, or 3.8%, to $17.03.
Among the stocks in the consumer discretionary field, BRP Inc. zoomed $4.17, or 12.7%, to $37.03, while Magna International triumphed $1.80, or 3%, to $62.27.
Asanko Gold, which plunged 20% in earlier trading a day after Muddy Waters said it was shorting the company's stock, rebounded by late morning. Shares in the mining firm, which disputed Muddy Waters' claims, rose late morning by more than 11%, before turning negative once again and losing 16 cents, or 7.3%, to $2.03.
Barrick Gold fell 37 cents, or 1.6%, to $21.97
Materials, home to precious and base metals miners, slipped, pinched by the price of gold.
First Quantum Minerals fell 25 cents, or 1.3%, to $11.14, while Lundin Mining drooped 12 cents, or 1.6%, to $7.32.
On the economic front, the seasonally-adjusted IHS Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index posted 55.1 in May, down only slightly from April’s six-year peak of 55.9.
As a result, the average reading for the second quarter of 2017 so far (55.5) points to the strongest improvement in business conditions since Q1 2011. The headline index has registered above the 50.0 no-change value in each month since March 2016.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 0.55 points to 800.45
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive on the day as information technology galloped 2%, while health-care and consumer discretionary stocks each jumped 1.4%.
The three laggards were gold, down 0.5%, while materials, lost 0.3%, and telecoms backed off 0.03%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities traded higher on Thursday, the first trading day in June, as Wall Street got ready for the release of the monthly jobs report.
The Dow Jones Industrials shot higher 122.47 points to end the day at 21,131.12, with UnitedHealth and Goldman Sachs contributing the most gains. The 30-stock index also traded about 60 points away from its intraday record.
The S&P 500 gained 18.26 points to 2,430.06, an all-time high, with materials, financials and health-care leading advancers. The health-care sector also reached its first 52-week high since March 15.
The NASDAQ jumped 48.31 points to 6,246.83, and hit a record intraday high earlier in the session.
In corporate news, shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise slipped more than 5% after the firm reported a significant decline in quarterly sales.
Meanwhile, Marathon Petroleum approved an additional $3 billion to its shares repurchase program.
All three indices are coming off solid monthly performances in May. S&P and NASDAQ posted monthly gains of 1.2% and 2.5%, respectively, while the Dow rose about 0.3% on the back of a subdued volatility environment.
Private payrolls surged by 253,000 in May, easily topping a consensus estimate of 185,000, according to a report from ADP and Moody's Analytics.
The report from ADP and Moody's is often seen as a preview to the U.S. government's monthly non-farm payrolls report, which is set for release Friday. Entering Thursday's session, economists expected the U.S. economy to have added 185,000 jobs, but JPMorgan's said it expects estimates to rise after ADP's beat.
Other data released Thursday included weekly jobless claims, which came in at 248,000, above a forecast of 239,000. The Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index for May came in at 54.9, just below an estimate of 55.0. April construction spending fell 1.4% with economists forecasting a gain of 0.5%
Auto companies, meanwhile, released monthly vehicle sales throughout the day.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note were slightly lower, raising yields to 2.22% from Wednesday’s 2.21%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped 13 cents to $48.19 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices sank $5.20 at $1,270.20 U.S. an ounce.
