CORRECTION: FIXES AMOUNT TSX FELL)
Stocks in Toronto washed off the red ink in which they were bathing much of Friday, and managed a finish in the plus category by the close, adding to Thursday’s all-time high.
The TSX gained 14.5 points to conclude Friday at 18,042.07. On the week, the index experienced a gain of 608 points, or 3.5%.
The Canadian dollar faded 0.06 cents to 78.78 cents U.S.
Techs led the brigade of winning stocks, with BlackBerry up 57 cents, or 6.4%, to $9.52, while Descartes Group took on $3.25, or 4.4%, to $77.39.
Among utilities, Boralex gained $2.91, or 5.6%, to $55.31, while Northland Power surged $2.63, or 5.5%, to $50.80.
Industrials moved higher, most notably, Mullen Group, traveling 58 cents, or 5.4%., higher to $11.43.
Golds weighed things down, as Eldorado Gold faded $1.36, or 7.5%, to $16.69, while Lundin Gold dropped 99 cents, or 8.4%, to $10.79.
Among materials, Silvercorp Metals docked 70 cents, or 8.2%, to $7.82, while Ero Copper dipped $1.49, or 6.6%, to $21.11.
Energy stocks fell, with Cenovus Energy sliding 26 cents, or 3%, to $8.35, while Whitecap Resources skidding 11 cents, or 2.1%, to $5.06.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada said employment fell by 63,000 (or 0.3%) in December—the first decline since April. The unemployment rate was 8.6%, little changed from 8.5% in November.
Analysts have raised their forecasts for the Canadian dollar, expecting the economy to benefit from fiscal stimulus and higher oil prices but after a 10-month rally the currency is set for a period of consolidation.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange tumbled 18.36 points, or 2%, to 896.71. On the week, though, the index surged more than 21 points, or 2.4%
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups gained ground on the day, with information technology better by 1.6%, utilities up 1.4%, and industrials ahead 1.2%.
The four laggards were weighed most by gold, down 4.4%, materials, sliding 3.6%, and energy, off 1.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks closed at record highs on Friday to end the first trading week of the year as traders weighed the prospects of new fiscal aid as well as disappointing U.S. jobs data.
The Dow Jones Industrials slid recovered 56.84points to 31,097.97.
The S&P 500 strengthened 20.89 points to 3,817.73, to hit a fresh all-time record. Consumer discretionary and real estate stocks led the
S&P 500 higher, with both sectors rising more than 1% each.
The NASDAQ jumped 134.49 points, or 1%, to 13,201.97, adding to its all-time high.
Both the Dow and S&P 500 posted four-day winning streaks.
Coca-Cola rose 2.2% to lead the Dow higher. The consumer discretionary and real estate sectors each rose more than 1%, lifting the S&P 500. The NASDAQ got a boost from Tesla, which popped 7.8%.
For the week, the Dow and S&P 500 each gained more than 1%, while the NASDAQ advanced 2.4%. Those weekly gains come despite the turmoil in Washington, where a riot at the Capitol on Wednesday delayed the procedural congressional confirmation of Biden’s victory.
The U.S. economy lost 140,000 jobs in December, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a gain of 50,000.
The unexpected drop in employment came as the recent surge in COVID-19 cases across the country has forced state and local governments to re-take stricter measures to mitigate the outbreak. More than 21.5 million coronavirus cases have now been confirmed in the U.S., according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Prices for the 10-Year Treasury faded, raising yields to 1.12% from Thursday’s 1.08%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.88 to $52.71 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gave back $67.20 to $1,846.40 U.S. an ounce.
