TSX Fails To Hold Gains, Ends Just Marginally Up

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market rebounded on Thursday after recent losses, but despite holding on in positive territory right through the session amid high volatility, ended just marginally higher on Thursday.

Some buoyant earnings reports, the rally on Wall Street and steady crude oil prices aided sentiment. However, due to uncertainty about near term outlook for stocks amid worries about geopolitical concerns, trade related issues and Italy's financial woes, the market failed to sustain at higher levels.

Activity was largely stock specific with quarterly earnings reports setting the trend. Shares from energy, healthcare, consumer discretionary and information technology sectors moved higher. Materials stocks declined, while financial, industrial and consumer staples stocks ended mixed.

In economic news, data released by Statistics Canada showed that average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees were $1,006 in August, up 0.6% from July. Compared with August 2017, earnings increased 2.9%.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended with a marginal gain of 14.05 points, or 0.10%, at 14,924.08, after scaling a low of 14,905.29 and a high of 15,009.91 intraday.

The Capped Energy Index gained 1.69%. Encana Corporation (ECA.TO) advanced by 3.5%. Suncor Energy Inc. (SU.TO) gained 1.25%, Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO), Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) and ARC Resources (ARX.TO) gained 1.2 to 2.1%.

Husky Energy (HSE.TO) ended marginally up. Husky reported third quarter earnings of $545 million, up sharply from $136 million in the same quarter last year. On an adjusted basis, the company said that it earned 57 cents per share in the quarter, up from 14 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

The Capped Healthcare Index climbed up 2.8%. Bausch Health Companies Inc. (BHC.TO) added 3%, Canopy Growth Corporation (WEED.TO) gained about 4% and Aphria Inc. (APH.TO) jumped more than 10%.

The Capped Technology Index added 2.17%. Shopify Inc. (SHOP.TO) jumped 12.1% after the company reported a sharp 58% growth in third quarter revenue. BlackBerry (BB.TO) climbed up 3.5%.

Celestica Inc. (CLS.TO) declined by 11% despite third quarter numbers falling in line with expectations.

The Capped Consumer Discretionary Index edged up 1.19%. Magna International Inc. (MG.TO), Gildan Activewear Inc. (GIL.TO), The Stars Group Inc. (TSGI.TO), Canada Goose Holdings Inc. (GOOS.TO), BRP Inc. (DOO.TO) gained 1.2 to 2.3%, while Linamar Corporation (LNR.TO) surged up 5.15%.

The Capped Financial Index edged up by about 0.5%. Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) gained nearly 1.5% after the bank raised its prime lending rate on Wednesday. National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) ended nearly 1% up and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) ended modestly higher.

The Capped Materials Index ended lower by 3.05%. Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX.TO) declined by about 3.5% after the company reported lower earnings for the third quarter. Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO) ended 2.7% down, Teck Resources (TECK.TO) plunged 7.7% after the company reported a near 25% decline in third quarter earnings, and Gold Corp. (G.TO) ended 18.4% down after reporting net loss for the third quarter.

Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM.TO) ended lower by about 3% after the company reported a substantial drop in third quarter earnings. Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (WPM.TO), First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) and Methanex Corporation (MX.TO) also ended notably lower, while CCL Industries Inc. (CCL.B.TO) gained 3.1% and Nutrien (NTR.TO) ended 1.35% up.

The U.S. market ended sharply higher, with bargain hunting lifting several top stocks. The Dow jumped 1.6%, the Nasdaq soared 3% and the S&P 500 surged up 1.9%. A positive reaction to earnings news from big-name companies also generated buying interest after disappointing earnings news weighed on the markets in the previous session.

In economic news, a report from the Commerce Department showed an unexpected increase in durable goods orders in the month of September. The National Association of Realtors also released a report showing an unexpected rebound in pending home sales in September and a report from the Labor Department showed a modest rebound in initial jobless claims in the week ended October 20th.

Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region were mostly lower on Thursday. Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index surged up by 1.6%, the German DAX Index jumped by 1% and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.6%.

The European Central Bank left its interest rates as well as its forward guidance unchanged on Thursday for a third consecutive policy session and reaffirmed that the its massive asset purchase program would end in December.

ECB President Mario Draghi said that policymakers were confident regarding the economy and that the inflation is gradually approaching its aim of "below, but close to 2%." Draghi also expressed confidence that his home country Italy and the European Commission would reach an agreement over budget finances. He also urged the private sector to prepare for a hard Brexit, saying such an event could cause "financial uneasiness."

In commodities, crude oil futures for December ended up $0.51, or 0.8%, at $67.33 a barrel.

Gold futures for December ended up $1.30, or 1%, at $1,132.40 an ounce, not far off from its close of $1,236.80 on Tuesday.

Silver futures for December ended lower by $0.046, at $14.630 an ounce, while Copper futures for December ended down $0.0030, at $2.7545 per pound.