Stocks in Canada’s largest centre opened higher on Tuesday, buoyed by gold producers as the metal's prices moved higher after news that U.S. President Donald Trump replaced Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 54.06 points to begin Tuesday’s session at 15,658.85
The Canadian dollar slid 0.04 cents to 77.82 cents U.S.
Among gold concerns, Barrick Gold surged 16 cents, or 1%, to $15.75, while Goldcorp gained seven cents to $17.17.
CIBC raised the price target on Cargojet Inc. to $74.00 from $62.00. Cargojet shares lost 5.5 cents to $66.00.
RBC cut the target price on TSO3 Inc. to $1.75 from $2.00. TSO3 shares shed a penny to $1.15.
Canaccord Genuity cut the rating on Urthecast Corp. to hold from speculative buy. Urthecast lost 4.5 cents, or 10.1%, to 40 cents.
The White House said President Donald Trump spoke on Monday with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about the steel and aluminum import tariffs Trump announced last week.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved forward 1.23 points to 828.93
All 12 TSX subgroups were positive, as gold hiked 0.9%, materials picked up 0.8%, and energy gained 0.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks traded higher on Tuesday after a data release showed U.S. inflation remains tame.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average strengthened 121.82 points to 25,300.43, with Intel leading the gains.
The S&P 500 restored 10.99 points to 2,794.01, with materials and telecommunications as the best-performing sectors.
The NASDAQ composite Index triumphed 26.41 points to reach an all-time high of 7,614.74
In corporate news, President Trump shut down Broadcom's proposed buyout of Qualcomm, citing concerns based on national security. Both companies have been ordered to abandon this deal immediately. Shares of Qualcomm dropped more than 5%.
Stock gains were briefly held in check by news that President Donald Trump ousted Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
The Washington Post first reported that Tillerson was out before Trump confirmed it in a tweet. Trump also said CIA Director Mike Pompeo would take over as secretary of state.
The U.S. consumer price index rose 0.2% in February, in line with expectations. Inflation concerns permeated through the market last month as investors worried that higher inflation would lead the Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy at a faster rate.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note inched forward, lowering yields to 2.86% from Monday’s 2.87%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices regained 55 cents a barrel to $61.91 U.S.
Gold prices hoisted $5.30 to $1,326.10 U.S. an ounce.
