Strong Gains Throughout North America

Stocks on both sides of the border took their cue from mild inflation figures in the states, and grew by leaps and bounds Tuesday.

The TSX Composite Index surged 219.25 points, or nearly 1%, to conclude Tuesday at 22,618.18.

The Canadian dollar eked ahead 0.18 cents to 72.94 cents U.S.

Engineering and professional services firm WSP Global said it would acquire U.S.-based Power Engineers for $1.78 billion. Shares in WSP perked $4.12 ,or 1.9%, to $216.51.

Sun Life Financial rose $3.32, or 5%, to $69.26 after the life insurance firm beat second-quarter profit estimates, strengthening the financial sector.

Among other Canadian stocks, Orla Mining shares rose 15 cents, or 3%, to $5.13.

In the tech sector, BlackBerry proved the star, jumping 16 cents, or 5.4%, to $3.13, while shares in Celestica rose $2.79, or 4.1%, to $70.37.

Among consumer discretionary stocks, Magna International took on $2.09, or 4%, to $54.37, while Linamar gained $2.12, or 3.5%, to $62.27.

In the consumer staples area, Metro advanced $1.73, or 2.2%, to $81.14, while Empire Company added 78 cents, or 2.1%, to $37.40.

Communications wilted in the summer heat, as TELUS dumped 29 cents, or 1.3%, to $22.25, while BCE slid 60 cents, or 1.3%, to $47.24.

ON BAYSTREET

The TSX Venture Exchange hiked 5.01 points to 545.66.

All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups gained momentum, led by information technology, up 2.4%, while consumer discretionary and consumer staples each leaped 1.6%.

The lone laggard proved to be communications, off 0.5%.

ON WALLSTREET

Stocks rallied Tuesday, moving closer to last month’s record levels following the first of two key U.S. inflation reports this week.

The Dow Jones Industrial index climbed 408.63 points, or 1%, to conclude Tuesday at 39,765.64.

The S&P 500 index gained 90.04 points, or 1.7%, to 5,434.43.

The NASDAQ popped 407 points, or 2.4%, to 17,187.61.

Starbucks surged more than 21% after the coffee chain tapped current Chipotle chief executive Brian Niccol as its next CEO. Shares of Chipotle sank about 4%.

The producer price index — a measure of wholesale prices — increased 0.1% last month. Economists expected the reading to show a monthly gain of 0.2% in July, in line with the previous month’s reading, according to Dow Jones consensus estimates.

The PPI encouraged investors ahead of the more widely followed consumer price index out Wednesday morning, which is expected to show an increase of 0.2% last month, up from a 0.1% decline in the prior month. The data could give an uncertain market some direction after last week’s wild moves.

Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained ground early Tuesday, lowering yields to 3.85% from Monday’s 3.91%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Oil prices dipped $1.58 at $78.48 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices were better by $1.90 to $2,505.90.

Related Stories