Canadian stocks rose a third day on Tuesday, extending a two-week high, as commodities producers advanced with the price of metals from copper to gold.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 95.06 points to close at 13,647.26
The Canadian dollar picked up 0.35 cents at 76.75 cents U.S.
Bombardier Inc. surged after Reuters reported that the planemaker had approached Airbus Group SE about acquiring a majority stake in the struggling CSeries jetliner.
The proposal involves Airbus helping Montreal-based Bombardier complete development of the aircraft in exchange for a controlling interest in the CSeries, program, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter whom it didn’t identify. The talks were exploratory, and neither company has made a decision, Reuters reported.
Bombardier’s widely traded Class B shares jumped 14.9% to $1.77 following the report. The stock rallied more than 18% earlier for the biggest intraday advance since Sept. 10.
Barrick Gold Corp. rallied 6.1% to $9.51, and Yamana Gold Inc. increased 8.9% to $2.82.
Chemical products company Canexus Corp. soared 25.4%, the most since 2009, to $1.48, after agreeing to sell itself to Superior Plus Corp. in an all-share deal that implies a 48% premium from Monday’s close. Superior lost 5.9%, the most since Sept. 1, to $10.71.
First Quantum Minerals Ltd. jumped 21% to $7.49, after announcing plans to cut net debt by greater than $1 billion through asset sales and other moves. The company also lowered its production forecasts for 2015 to 385,000 to 410,000 tonnes from a July 29 estimate of 410,000 to 440,000 tonnes. First Quantum has surged 61% in five days.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that this country's exports declined 3.6% in August while imports edged up 0.2%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade deficit with the world widened from $817 million in July to $2.5 billion in August.
Moreover, Western University in London, Ontario came out this morning with its Ivey Purchasing Managers Index. The figure for the end of September stood at 53.7, compared to 58.0 in August, and 58.6, for September 2014.
The survey asks purchasing managers whether their buys increased, decreased, or stayed the same during the month. Any figure over 50 signals shows an increase, while below 50 shows a decrease.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange spiked 8.78 points to 538.69
All but four of the 13 TSX subgroups were down on the day, as health-care capsized 3.3%, utilities were 2.2% lower, and real-estate lost 1.5%.
The four gainers were spearheaded by metals and mining, up 7.6%. energy, up 3.8%, and materials, taking on 3.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed mixed Tuesday, stabilizing after a sharp two-day rally, as investors awaited the official beginning of the third-quarter earnings season.
The Dow Jones industrial average eked up 13.76 points to finish at 16,790.19, with UnitedHealth weighing the most on the index. DuPont closed up 7.7% to contribute the most to gains.
The S&P 500 dipped 6.06 points to 1,980.99, after posting its first five-day win streak for 2015 on Monday.
Energy closed up 2.2% and materials gained nearly 1.3% as the greatest advancers in the S&P, which attempted slight gains in intraday trade. Health care closed down more than 2% as the greatest laggard.
The NASDAQ index lost 30.12 points to 4,751.14, as Apple ended about half a percentage point higher.
After the close Monday, DuPont's chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ellen Kullman announced plans to retire October 16. Director Edward Breen will serve as interim chairman and CEO. DuPont also cut its outlook for the year and announced an acceleration of its plans to trim expenses.
Before the opening bell, PepsiCo reported earnings that beat on both the top and bottom line. The firm also raised its full-year growth target. Shares of Pepsi closed up 1.3%.
Yum Brands is scheduled to report after the close. The unofficial start to earnings season comes Thursday with Alcoa's earnings after the bell. The bulk of third-quarter earnings reports come in the next few weeks.
On the data front, the August trade deficit came in at $48.3 billion U.S., the widest in five months.
The International Monetary Fund trimmed its global growth forecast for 2015 from 3.3% to 3.1%, citing weaker growth prospects for emerging economies.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained slightly, lowering yields to 2.04%, compared to Monday’s 2.06%. Treasury price and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices improved $2.39 a barrel to $48.65 U.S.
Gold prices gained $11.70 to $1,147.45 U.S. an ounce.
