Stock markets in Canada climbed on the backs of oil companies and surged in the first hour of the week, while real-estate and financials also proved bright stars.
The TSX gained 133.29 points to open the week at 16,198.64
The Canadian dollar inched higher 0.05 cents to 74.78 cents U.S.
Aurinia Resources hit a 52-week high of $5.31, while fellow energy component Vermilion Energy jumped 21 cents, or 6.6%, to $3.40.
In the financial sector, Home Capital Group leaped 72 cents, or 3.4%, to $22.23, while Industrial Alliance grabbed $1.44, or 3.2%, to $46.88.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange leaped 11.2 points, or 1.6%, to 706.46.
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups were in positive country in Monday’s first hour, with energy gushing 3.3%, financials higher 1.7%, and real-estate climbing 1.3%.
The one laggard was in gold, off but 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose sharply on Monday as Wall Street built on the strong gains from the previous session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average zoomed 364.89 points, or 1.3%, to start Monday’s session at 27,538.85.
The S&P 500 spiked 38.8 points, or 1.2%, to 3,337.26.
The NASDAQ leaped 123.37 points, or 1.1%, to 11,036.93.
Shares of major tech names rose broadly. Facebook and Amazon climbed 0.9% and 2%, respectively. Apple and Netflix were up more than 1% each. Alphabet advanced 1.6% and Microsoft traded higher by 1.1%.
Bank stocks also contributed to Monday’s gains. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley all popped more than 1%.
Sentiment on Wall Street got a boost after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday a last-minute coronavirus aid deal remains on the table as House Democrats try to forge ahead on a smaller aid package costing about $2.4 trillion. The chamber could vote on the bill as soon as next week. Still, that price tag is well above what Republican leadership has indicated it will support for a new package.
Investors also cheered a slew of corporate dealmaking activity. Devon Energy and WPX Energy announced they will mover forward with a merger of equals, sending their stocks up 5% and 8.2%, respectively. Meanwhile, Caesars Entertainment revealed a cash offer to buy
London-based William Hill for 2.9 billion pounds.
Shares of companies that would benefit from the economy reopening caught a bid. Carnival Corp picked up 1.8%, and American Airlines was up 2.8%.
Still, major averages are on track to post steep losses for September, a historically weak month for stocks. The Dow and the S&P 500 have fallen 4.4% and 5.8%, respectively, while the NASDAQ has dropped 7.3%. The declines followed a massive comeback from the coronavirus selloff that saw the S&P 500 climb more than 50% from its March bottom.
Prices for the 10-Year Treasury were static, maintaining yields at Friday’s 0.66%.
Oil prices deleted seven cents to $40.18 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices recovered $5.80 to $1,872.10 U.S. an ounce.
