Canadian Stocks Regain Ground Following Recent Weakness

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks turned in a strong performance during trading on Thursday, regaining ground after trending lower over past several sessions.

After an early move to the upside, the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index gave back some ground but remained firmly positive.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index climbed 190.83 points or 0.6 percent to 31,440.85, snapping a four-day losing streak, although the index remains well off the record closing high set a week ago.

The rebound on Bay Street came following the release of tamer-than-expected U.S. inflation data that renewed confidence the Federal Reserve will continue to cut interest rates next year.

Interest rate-sensitive commercial real estate stocks turned in some of the best performances on the day, driving the S&P/TSX Capped Real Estate Index up by 1.4 percent.

Consumer, industrial and financial stocks also saw some strength, while energy stocks gave back ground after moving sharply higher in the previous session.

Healthcare stocks showed a substantial move to the downside, resulting in a 9.6 percent nosedive by the S&P/TSX Capped Health Care Index.