Canada's main stock index opened higher on Monday, lifted by technology and energy stocks, while investors braced for political changes amid talks of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's impending resignation later in the day.
The TSX grabbed 75.41 points to open Monday at 25,148.95.
The Canadian dollar hiked 0.54 cents to 69.79 cents U.S.
Calls for Trudeau to step aside have grown since December, when his closest ally Chrystia Freeland resigned as the country's finance minister after clashing with him on issues including how to handle possible U.S. tariffs.
Separately, focus will be on the domestic employment data, scheduled to release on Friday, to gauge the Canadian economy's health and the interest rate path of the Bank of Canada. Traders are anticipating a near-70% chance for a 25-basis-point rate cut.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange forged ahead 0.65 points to 623.94.
Six of the 12 TSX subgroups retreated, weighed most by gold, off 1.1%, while real-estate backtracked 0.5%, and consumer staples lost 0.4%.
Energy led the five gainers, up 1.9%, while information technology and consumer discretionary stocks each climbed 0.6%.
Financials were unchanged in the first hour.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks jumped on Monday, recovering from last week’s losses as chipmakers jumped.
The Dow Jones Industrials stormed ahead 232.67 points to 42,964.80.
The S&P 500 spiked 66.56 points, or 1.1%, to 6,009.03.
The NASDAQ Composite popped 349.57 or 1.8%, to 19,971.25.
Chip stocks led the gains after Foxconn announced record fourth-quarter revenue. Nvidia and Broadcom rose more than 3.1% and 2.9% each, respectively, while Micron Technology advanced 9%.
Also aiding market sentiment on Monday is a Washington Post report saying President-elect Donald Trump’s tariff plan would be narrower than anticipated. According to the report, the levies would only cover critical imports. Trump called for “universal” tariffs as high as 10%-20% during his campaign.
Ford and General Motors shares gained 2% on optimism a more restrained tariff policy from Trump wouldn’t spark a global trade war.
Investors are entering another shortened trading week – which will wrap the next of the first five January trading days – on a wobbly note and with lingering concerns about the Federal Reserve’s interest rate projections. The New York Stock Exchange will be closed Thursday to mourn the death of former President Jimmy Carter.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury dropped, raising yields to 4.64% from Thursday’s 4.60 %. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices hiked 96 cents to $74.92 U.S. a barrel.
Prices for gold declined $12.60 an ounce to $2,642.10 U.S.
