TSX Ends On Firm Note On Trade Talks Hopes

(RTTNews) - After posting losses in the previous two sessions, the Canadian stock market ended on a firm note on Wednesday amid renewed optimism about upcoming high-level trade talks between the U.S.-China.

Gains in consumer discretionary, industrials and information technology sections led the market higher. A few stocks from financial and consumer staples sections too posted solid gains. Energy and materials shares were a bit subdued due to sluggish commodity prices. Healthcare shares ended mixed.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended up 85.92 points, or 0.53%, at 16,379.87, after rising to a high of 16,409.10 in the session.

On Tuesday, the index ended down 127.80 points, or 0.78%, at 16,293.95, after edging down by 0.17% a session earlier.

Consumer discretionary stocks Dollarama Inc (DOL.TO), Brp Inc. (DOO.TO), Linamar Corp (LNR.TO) and The Stars Group (TSGI.TO) gained 2 to 2.5%. Magna International (MG.TO), Great Canadian Gaming Corp (GC.TO), Mty Food Group (MTY.TO), Spin Master (TOY.TO), Restaurant Brands International (QSR.TO) and Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC.A.TO) gained 1 to 2.5%.

Among the stocks in the industrials space, Ag Growth International (AFN.TO) gained more than 6%, Ballard Power Systems (BLDP.TO) added 3.6%, SNC-Lavalin (SNC.TO) ended 2.5% up and WSP Global (WSP.TO) closed higher by 2%. Air Canada (AC.TO), Thomson Reuters (TRI.TO), New Flyer Industries (NFI.TO) and Stantec (STN.TO) gained 1.6 to 1.8%.

In the information technology space, Quarterhill Inc. (QTRH.TO), Blackberry (BB.TO), Sierra Wireless (SW.TO), Open Text Corporation (OTEX.TO), Enghouse Systems (ENGH.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), CGI Group (GIB.A.TO) and Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) ended stronger by 1 to 2.5%.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO), Manulife Financial (MFC.TO), Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO), Sun Life Financial (SLF.TO), Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) and Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) were among the notable gainers in the financial space.

Energy stocks Crescent Point Energy (CPG.TO), Encana Corp (ECA.TO), Precision Drilling (PD.TO) and Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO) ended with sharp to moderate losses.

In the mining space, B2Gold Corp (BTO.TO), First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) and Kinross Gold Corporation (K.TO) lost 0.7% to 1.6%.

The U.S. market ended notably higher as traders picked up stocks amid renewed optimism about upcoming U.S.-China trade talks. The Dow climbed 0.7%, the Nasdaq surged up 1% and the S&P 500 jumped 0.9%.

The market reacted positively to a report from Bloomberg News that China is still open to reaching a partial trade deal with the U.S. as long as President Donald Trump does not impose any more tariffs.

In return, Beijing would offer non-core concessions like purchases of agricultural products without giving in on major sticking points, the report said, citing an official with direct knowledge of the talks.

The major European markets all moved to the upside on optimism about trade talks. Markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower, tracking Wall Street's losses in the previous session.

In commodities, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November ended up $0.04, or about 0.08%, at $52.80 a barrel.

Gold futures for December ended up $8.90, or 0.6%, at $1,512.80 an ounce. Gold futures edged up further after the Federal Reserve released the minutes of its monetary policy meeting in September.

Silver futures for December ended up $0.110, at $17.810 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $2.5680 per pound, up $0.0005 from previous close.