TSX ends up 0.4% at 25,357.74
For the week, the index advances 1.3%
Materials sector rises 2.8% as gold rallies
Air Canada jumps 14.6% after earnings report
(Updates at market close)
May 9 (Reuters) – Canada’s main stock index added to its weekly gain on Friday, led by energy and metal mining shares, as hopes that trade tensions could ease offset evidence that tariff-related uncertainty is already weighing on domestic activity.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended up 103.68 points, or 0.4%, at 25,357.74, its highest closing level since February 28. For the week, the index advanced 1.3, its fifth straight weekly gain.
“The TSX is proving to be quite resilient,” said Elvis Picardo, a portfolio manager at Luft Financial, iA Private Wealth.
“Investors are still factoring in the best case scenario, hoping that the trade war blows over and if things get much worse then the Bank of Canada comes to the rescue with rate cuts, but I think that might be misguided optimism.”
The Canadian unemployment rate rose to 6.9% in April, the highest level since November, as U.S. tariffs started to hurt Canada’s export-dependent economy.
Investors see a 67% chance that the BoC would resume its interest rate cutting campaign next month, up from 46% before the jobs report.
“It’s going to take a while for that (trade) uncertainty to dissipate,” Picardo said.
The materials sector, which includes metal mining shares, rose 2.8% as gold and copper prices climbed.
Oil also rose, settling 3.2% higher at $59.91 a barrel. Energy added 2%, while real estate was up 0.5% as long-term borrowing costs fell.
The Canadian 10-year yield eased 4.5 basis points to 3.159%.
Shares of Air Canada jumped 14.6% after the airline reported a smaller than expected quarterly loss and said it would purchase and cancel up to C$500 million ($358.96 million) in shares by the end of next month.
Telus Corp was another standout. The communications technology firm’s shares rose 7.1% after quarterly results beat estimates. The technology sector was down 1.5%.
($1 = 1.3929 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Fergal Smith in Toronto and Sanchayaita Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
