Stocks in Toronto went to places they’d never been before Monday, boosted mostly by health-care and tech stocks.
The TSX Composite Index regained 133.42 points to conclude Monday at 23,702.07, an all-time record.
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.13 cents to 73.52 cents U.S.
In corporate news, Air Canada on Sunday reached a tentative last-minute deal with its pilots’ union over a new four-year collective agreement, ending a standoff over pay and benefits, thus averting a near-term strike or lockout. Shares in “The Maple Leaf Airline” had lift of 55 cents, or 3.5%, to close Monday at $16.40.
Bausch Health Companies jumped 96 cents, or 10.6% to $9.51, after reports of unit Bausch + Lomb exploring sale options. Elsewhere in the health realm, Tilray claimed six cents, or 2.5%, to $2.43.
Tech stocks did well, too, as Dye & Durham climbed 27 cents, or 2%, to $13.93, while Lightspeed Commerce hiked 30 cents, or 1.8%, to $17.46.
Among energy plays, Mattr Corp. captured 41 cents, or 3%, to $14.30, while Athabasca Oil gained 16 cents, or 3.1%, to $5.28.
Gold, however, slid, with Novagold down 25 cents, or 4.1%, to $5.86, while Kinross Gold dropped 50 cents, or 3.7%, to $12.86.
In real-estate, Storagevault subsided 14 cents, or 2.8%, to $4.92, while units of Crombie REIT plummeted 26 cents, or 1.6%, to $15.64.
Communications backpedaled, with shares in BCE off 40 cents to $46.71.
On the economic docket, motor vehicle sales rang in at 169,000 for July, compared to 166,000 in the prior-year month.
Manufacturing sales rose 1.4% in July, mainly on higher sales of petroleum and coal, and chemical products. The gains were partially offset by lower sales of wood products. Also, the Canadian Real Estate Association reported home sales recorded over Canadian MLS Systems edged up by 1.3% on a month-over-month basis in August, reaching their highest level since January and their second highest in over a year.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange forged ahead 1.62 points to 582.05.
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were higher Monday, with health-care up 2.4%, energy gushing 1.1%, and information technology progressing 1%.
The four laggards were weighed most by gold, down 5%, while real-estate and communications each fell 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
The S&P 500 was little changed Monday as investors await the Federal Reserve’s highly anticipated policy meeting, during which central bankers are expected to cut rates for the first time since 2020. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to a new all-time high.
The 30-stock index jumped 228.30 points to 41,622.08
The much broader index eked higher 7.07 points to 5,633.09
The NASDAQ stumbled 91.85 points to 17,592.13.
Apple shares declined nearly 3% after analysts at firms, including Bank of America and JPMorgan, noted that shipping times could point to lighter demand for iPhone 16 Pro models than the prior year.
Chip stocks like Nvidia, which led the market comeback last week, were lower as investors took off some of their bets. The AI giant lost 2.8% Monday. Broadcom fell 3%, while KLA and Marvell Technology dropped 3.5% and 2.5%, respectively.
The S&P 500 is around 1% away from its July record and could notch a new all-time high this week. After a rough start to a historically weak September, the three major U.S. indexes ended last week’s trading session in the green, with the S&P 500 and NASDAQ just closing their best week of 2024.
The Fed is set to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday and are widely anticipated to make its first interest rate cut since it began hiking rates in March 2022. A cut this week would be a pivotal move, as many investors hope the decision could lower borrowing costs for companies and improve overall earnings growth — boosting economic growth.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury regained strength, lowering yields to 3.62% from Friday’s 3.64%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.88 to $70.53 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices lost 70 cents to $2,610.