North American stocks notch modest gains

TORONTO — The health-care sector, which includes some of the big medical marijuana names, helped Canada’s main stock index notch a small gain Monday, while U.S. stock markets also closed up as geopolitical tensions eased.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 26.41 points at 15,300.38, as losses in energy and metal stocks held back further gains.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 212.90 points at 24,573.04. The S&P 500 index ended up 21.54 points at 2,677.84 and the Nasdaq composite index was up 49.63 points at 7,156.28. The Canadian dollar averaged 79.50 cents US, up 0.12 of a US cent.

The May crude contract ended down US$1.17 cents at US$66.22 per barrel and the May natural gas contract was up two cents to US$2.75 per mmBTU.