Stocks soared as Monday morning became afternoon, hovering near its all-time high, on gains in materials and financial shares as well as the optimism around a September rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The TSX Composite Index remained on the march, pumping higher 121.61 points, to pause for lunch at 23,176.22.
The Canadian dollar gained 0.21 cents to 73.31 cents U.S.
Meanwhile, the country's freight rail network could come to a halt this week as Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City plan to lock out workers from the early hours of Thursday. CN shares picked up 77 cents, or $155.28, while shares in CP took on 17 cents to $108.33.
This comes after the parties failed to reach a labour deal despite negotiations.
In corporate news, Alimentation Couche-Tard's shares fell 58 cents to $82.99, after the Canadian convenience store operator announced a potential takeover bid for Japan's Seven & i.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 5.51 points, or 1%, to 571.92
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups were in the green by noon, with materials sprouting 1.4%, gold increasing 1.2%, and energy, 1% more energetic.
The lone laggard was in health-care, down 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks advanced on Monday, building on the market’s comeback as investors readied for the closely watched Federal Reserve symposium later this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial index ballooned 196.51 points by noon Monday at 40,856.27
The S&P 500 index gained 23.31 points to 5,577.56.
The NASDAQ sprang back up 68.51points to 17,700.33.
Stocks are coming off a winning week, the latest turn amid a volatile stretch for equities. Notably, the broad S&P 500 rallied nearly 4% for its best week since 2023, while the Nasdaq jumped more than 5% as tech stocks led the rebound.
August had a turbulent start after disappointing data fueled recession fears and bolstered concerns that the Federal Reserve was behind the curve on lowering interest rates. Those worries sparked a global selloff, pushing the S&P 500 on Aug. 5 to record its worst day since 2022.
But fresh data last week seemed to subdue an anxious market and boost hopes that the economy can attain a soft-landing scenario.
Investors saw good stats on retail sales and initial jobless claims, in addition to strong earnings from Walmart. On top of that, the annualized inflation rate measured in July’s consumer price index touched its lowest level in more than three years.
Now, investors are hoping for insights into the path of interest rates amid mounting hopes for a forthcoming cut. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will speak Friday at the central bank’s symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Before then, traders will parse minutes from the Fed’s most recent meeting due on Wednesday.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury were static, keeping yields at Friday’s 3.88%.
Oil prices slipped 31 cents at $76.34 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices tacked on $4.50 to $2,542.30.
