TH: TSX higher as investors weigh positive earnings
The Toronto stock market was higher Thursday near midday as investors weighed the first batch of third-quarter earnings reports, which was led by surprisingly strong results from U.S. aluminum giant Alcoa.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 135.05 to 11,484.93, extending its triple-digit gains into a fourth consecutive day.
Earnings season effectively got underway after the closing bell on Wednesday with a report by U.S. aluminum giant Alcoa Inc., which surprised analysts with its first profit in nine months.
The company posted a profit of US$77 million, or eight cents per share, tied to cost-cutting and rising sales to automakers.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.63 of a cent in the morning to 94.76 cents US. The loonie has risen more than two cents since the beginning of the month, fuelled in part by rising prices for important Canadian commodities.
There were also encouraging U.S. economic data which said the number of Americans making new claims for jobless benefits fell last week to the lowest level since early January, as employers cut fewer workers. The U.S. Labour Department reported first-time claims for unemployment insurance dropped last week to a seasonally adjusted 521,000.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrials moved 66 points higher to 9,792.
The Nasdaq composite index rose 19 points to 2,129 while the S&P 500 index gained 10 points to 1,067.
A number of big U.S. retailers have reported lower September sales at stores open at least a year, but some still managed to beat analysts' expectations.
Macy's Inc. and Target reported smaller-than-expected declines in sales at stores opened at least a year. The measure is considered a key indicator of a retailer's health.
Consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of all U.S. economic activity, so improvement in retail sales would provide further evidence of a rebound.
On the TSX, diversified metals and mining stocks led gains, rising 4.8 per cent, while HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX: HBM) said it has approved an $85-million budget for Phase 1 of the Lalor gold and base-metals project in northern Manitoba. HudBay shares rose $1.14 to $14.84.
Meanwhile, the energy sector lifted 1.8 per cent even as the November crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $2.01 to US$71.58 a barrel.
Gold stocks were up 1.3 per cent as the December gold contract on the Nymex climbed $9.80 to US$1054.20 an ounce.
In corporate news, Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (TSX: BAM.A) will pay US$265 million to acquire half of an Australian coal terminal and all of an English port business as part of a US$1.1-billion deal with Babcock & Brown Infrastructure of Sydney. Brookfield shares gained 99 cents to $25.06.
Velo Energy Inc. (TSXV:VLO) stock popped 23 per cent after the company said Wednesday that it has acquired an interest in several properties in the North Sea. Its shares were up 17 cents to 82 cents.
Galleon Energy Inc. (TSX: GO) shares were ahead 31 cents to $6.53 after the company announced it has arranged a $15.6-million syndicated financing on a bought deal basis to pay for significant exploration expenses.
Drug maker Labopharm Inc. (TSX: DDS) said it has finalized a distribution and supply agreement worth an estimated C$11.7 million with the German company that developed the painkiller Tramadol. The company's shares rose six cents to $2.08.
