FX.co ★ TSX Sets Fresh Record

The S&P/TSX Composite Index concluded Thursday's trading session with a 0.6% increase, reaching a new all-time high of 27,034. This upward movement was primarily fueled by advancements in the technology and financial sectors, buoyed by optimism surrounding a trade agreement between the United States and Vietnam, along with strong employment data from the US. Canadian technology giants, Shopify and Constellation Software, saw their shares rise by 2.1% and 1.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, financial powerhouses Brookfield Asset Management and the Bank of Montreal posted gains of 2.7% and 1.1% each. These gains effectively countered the losses in the energy and base-metal mining sectors, which were impacted by a dip in global metal prices. Domestically, Statistics Canada announced that merchandise exports for May increased by 1.1%, while imports decreased by 1.6%, leading to a reduced trade deficit but still indicating subdued economic momentum overall. Negotiations to extend punitive US tariffs beyond the July 9th deadline remain unresolved, with the exception of a 20% reprieve granted to Vietnam, keeping resource exporters under pressure. An unexpectedly strong figure of 147,000 in US nonfarm payrolls for June further boosted confidence in North American economic growth.