Canadian Stocks End On Upbeat Note; TSX Rises 1.8%

(RTTNews) - The Canadian market ended on an upbeat note on Thursday, tracking gains in global markets amid slightly easing worries about growth on hopes the Fed will likely start easing its policy tightening stance later this year.

Higher crude oil prices triggered hectic buying in the energy section, contributing substantially to market's strong close.

Consumer discretionary, technology, healthcare, consumer staples and materials shares posted impressive gains. Several stocks from financials and real estate sectors too ended notably higher.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended with a strong gain of 333.51 points or 1.78% at 19,063.17, slightly off the day's high of 19,085.45.

The Energy Capped Index surged 4.51%. Advantage Oil & Gas (AAV.TO), Crescent Point Energy (CPG.TO), Vermilion Energy (VET.TO), Nuvista Energy (NVA.TO), Freehold Royalties (FRU.TO) and Tamarack Valley Energy (TVE.TO) gained 10 to 13.5%.

The Consumer Discretionary Capped Index climbed 3.26%. Aritzia (ATZ.TO) gained more than 7.5%. Brp Inc (DOO.TO), Magna International (MG.TO), Linamar Corp (LNR.TO), Mty Food Group (MTY.TO) and Canada Goose Holdings (GOOS.TO) gained 5 to 6.2%.

Hut 8 Mining, up 14.4%, was the top gainer in the Information Technology Index, which surged nearly 3%. Magnet Forensics (MAGT.TO), Converge Technology Solutions (CTS.TO) and Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) gained 6.4 to 7.7%.

The Health Care Index gained 2.95%. Bausch Health Companies (BHC.TO) rallied more than 7%. Aurora Cannabis (ACB.TO), Cronos Group (CRON.TO) and Canopy Growth Corp (WEED.TO) gained 3.3%, 2.5% and 1.7%, respectively. Tilray Inc (TLRY.TO) gained about 1.5%.

First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO), up nearly 11%, was the top gainer in the Materials index. Capstone Mining (CS.TO), Lithium Americas Corp (LAC.TO), Ivanhoe Mines (IVN.TO) and Ero Copper (ERO.TO) gained 8 to 10%.

Manulife Financial (MFC.TO), National Bank of Canada (NA.TO), Fairfax Financial Holdings (FFH.TO), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO), Sun Life Financial (SLF.TO), Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) and Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) were among the major gainers in the financials section.

Data from Statistics Canada showed Canada's trade surplus broadened to C$ 5.3 billion in May of 2022, from an upwardly revised C$ 2.2 billion in the prior month. It was the largest monthly trade surplus since August of 2008, as exports rose 4.1% from a month earlier to a record high of C$ 68.4 billion. Meanwhile, imports decreased 0.7% to C$ 63.1 billion, the first decrease in four months.

The Ivey Purchasing Managers Index in Canada fell to 62.2 in June of 2022 from 72 in the previous month, a report from the Richard Ivey School of Business showed. It was the lowest reading since February.