Equities in Canada’s largest market managed to keep what they gained Wednesday, as investors expressed interest rate relief from the Bank of Canada
The TSX Composite came off its highs of the day, but remained positive 176.48 points, to greet the closing bell Wednesday at 19,273.49.
The Canadian dollar gained 0.31 cents to 73.74 cents U.S.
Rogers Communications jumped $3.28, or 6.1%, to $56.91, while Shaw Communications gained $2.54, or 6.1%, to $36.60, after the federal government imposed conditions on Rogers’ proposed remedy to overcome Competition Bureau concerns about its $20-billion deal.
Health-care concerns were next up the ladder, with Canopy Growth climbing 34 cents, or 8.6%, to $4.30, while Bausch Health Companies added 32 cents, or 3.4%, to $9.75.
Gold roared ahead, with Wesdome Gold better by 30 cents, or 3.5%, to $8.91, while Torex Gold Resources tallied 38 cents, or 3.8%, to $10.27.
The Bank of Canada confounded some of the experts by raising its trendsetting rate by less than had been projected.
The central bank increased its target for the overnight rate to 3.75%, with the Bank Rate at 4% and the deposit rate at 3.75%.
Some had suggested the jump would be as much as three-quarters of a percentage point.
The Bank is also continuing its policy of quantitative tightening.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved backward 0.48 points to 595.46.
All 12 TSX subgroups gained ground, as communications improved 3.2%, health-care was up 2.6%, and gold shone brighter 2.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
The NASDAQ Composite and S&P 500 slid Wednesday as traders assessed disappointing earnings from tech giants Microsoft and Alphabet.
The Dow Jones Industrials inched up 2.37 points to close Wednesday at 31,839.11,
The S&P 500 settled 28.51 points to 3,830.60.
The NASDAQ plummeted 228.12 points, or 2%, to 10,970.99.
Utilities and real estate traded slightly negative as a sector late in the day. They joined consumer discretionary, communication services and technology in the red.
Shares of Google-parent Alphabet dropped 8% after the tech giant missed expectations on the top and bottom lines. Alphabet also reported a decline in YouTube ad revenue, which spurred investors to deliberate the outlook for other tech companies that rely on ad spending.
Meanwhile, Microsoft declined about 7% after the tech giant reported weaker-than-expected cloud revenue in its latest quarterly results, despite beating earnings and revenue estimates. The company also issued current-quarter revenue guidance that fell short of expectations.
In other earnings news, Harley-Davidson shares rose 11.9% after the motorcycle maker reported beating expectations before the bell.
Boeing lost 8.9% after the jet maker reported a quarterly loss and missed revenue expectations.
Stocks attempted a rally earlier in the day, with traders attempting to shake off the quarterly results from Microsoft and Alphabet.
Treasury prices gained, lowering yields to 4.01% from Tuesday’s 4.09%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices heightened $2.79 to $88.11 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices acquired $10.70 to $1,668.70 U.S. an ounce.
NASDAQ Breaks 3-Day Win Streak