The Canadian market experienced a positive outcome on Monday, driven by the robust performance of oil and metal prices that spurred significant buying in the energy and materials sectors.
Investor sentiment remained somewhat cautious as the market awaited critical economic data from the U.S. and Canada for further direction.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index climbed 87.63 points, or 0.39%, to close at 22,398.93. The index fluctuated between a low of 22,322.76 and a high of 22,452.70.
The Materials Capped Index saw a substantial rise of 3.55%. Osisko Mining (OSK.TO) skyrocketed by 63% following Johannesburg-based Gold Fields Ltd's announcement of its agreement to acquire Osisko Mining for C$2.16 billion. Gold Fields will pay C$4.90 per share, reflecting a 55% premium to Osisko's trading price on August 9.
Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO) surged nearly 9.5% after declaring a dividend of $0.10 per share for Q2 2024. Additionally, Barrick repurchased 2.95 million shares during Q2 under its $1 billion share buyback program initiated in February 2024.
Iamgold Corp (IMG.TO) surged nearly 11% on better-than-expected quarterly results. New Gold Inc (NGD.TO) and Wesdome Gold Mines (WDO.TO) appreciated by 8.4% and 7.4%, respectively. Other notable gains included Novagold (NG.TO), Torex Gold Resources (TXG.TO), B2Gold Corp (BTO.TO), Lundin Gold (LUG.TO), Kinross Gold Corp (K.TO), Seabridge Gold (SEA.TO), and Eldorado Gold (ELD.TO), which rose between 5% and 6.2%.
The Energy Capped Index advanced by 3.02%. Kelt Exploration (KEL.TO) surged 8.4%, and Advantage Oil & Gas (AAV.TO) climbed 7.8%. Other significant gains in the sector included Birchcliff Energy (BIR.TO), Arc Resources (ARX.TO), Peyto Exploration (PEY.TO), Baytex Energy (BTE.TO), Parex Resources (PXT.TO), Nuvista Energy (NVA.TO), and Athabasca Oil Corp (ATH.TO), rising between 4% and 6%.
Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) increased by 4.2% following its announcement to acquire all issued and outstanding common shares of Crew Energy Inc., in exchange for 18.778 million Tourmaline common shares and the assumption of approximately $240 million in net debt, totaling approximately $1.3 billion.
On the downside, technology stocks faced losses, with Converge Technology Solutions (CTS.TO), Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), and Dye & Durham (DND.TO) declining between 2.5% and 4%. Additionally, Sylogist (SYZ.TO), Bitfarms (BITF.TO), Open Text Corp (OTEX.TO), and Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) closed down between 1.2% and 1.7%.
Scotiabank (BNS.TO) fell by 3.4% following the announcement of an agreement to acquire a 14.9% pro forma ownership stake in KeyCorp, a financial services firm, through the issuance of shares at $17.17 per share. The total cash consideration for this acquisition is approximately $2.8 billion.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that building permits in Canada dropped to -13.9% in June from -12.7% in May.
