On Thursday, the Canadian benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index nearly set a new record high, yet finished only modestly higher after investors scaled back some of the gains at higher levels towards the end of play.
Comments from the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England, both of which indicated a lenient approach, the surprise rate cut from the Swiss National Bank, and a recent weak Canadian inflation report all contributed to a positive market sentiment.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index, which rose to 22,197.06 during the day, saw a closing gain of 41.55 points or 0.19%, ending the session at 22,087.26.
Financials, real estate, industrials, and utilities stocks observed significant increases, while consumer staples stocks weakened.
Among the businesses that gained, Celestica Inc rose by over 7%, and Dayforce increased around 4.2%. TFI International, Cargojet, Colliers International, National Bank of Canada, West Fraser Timber, WSP Global, Kinaxis Inc, and Canadian National Railway all experienced an increase ranging between 1 to 2.5%.
Not all businesses saw gains, with First Quantum Minerals falling by approximately 5.7% while Alimentation Couche-Tard and CGI Inc declined by 4.2% and 3.1% respectively. Shopify Inc, Precision Drilling Corporation, Rogers Communications, Premium Brands Holdings, Morguard Corporation, Tourmaline Oil Corp, and Dollarama Inc also ended notably lower.
In terms of Canadian economic news, the house price index revealed an increase to 0.1% in February, up from -0.1% in January, as reported by Statistics Canada.
