Bank, oil lift TSX, loonie ends streak
TORONTO — The Toronto Stock Exchange’s main index rose on solid earnings and a boost in the price of oil, while indices south of the border slipped.
The S&P/TSX composite index climbed 78.20 points to 15,063.16.
The jump came as one of Canada’s biggest banks reported strong results for its latest financial quarter, said Ian Scott, an investment analyst at Manulife Asset Management, setting the tone for a slew of financial company earnings this week.
Royal Bank, the first of Canada’s six biggest banks to report third-quarter financial results this year, boosted its dividend by five per cent to 91 cents per share, which one analyst said was twice as big as expected.
A bump in the price of oil also lifted the energy sector, where shares rose on average by more than one per cent.
The October crude contract advanced 58 cents to $48.41 per barrel, in part thanks to data showing lower inventory levels.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s latest weekly petroleum status report showed U.S. commercial crude inventories, excluding those in the strategic petroleum reserve, for the week ending Friday, Aug. 18, decreased by 3.3 million from the previous week.
Meanwhile, politics impacted Wall Street as Tuesday night’s commentary from U.S. President Donald Trump worked its way into the markets, said Scott.
Trump threatened to shut down the federal government unless Congress agreed to fund a wall on the Mexico-U.S. border — one of the American leader’s major campaign promises.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 87.80 points to 21,812.09, the S&P 500 index fell 8.47 points to 2,444.04, and the Nasdaq composite index shed 19.07 points to 6,278.41.
In currency markets, the Canadian dollar was trading at an average price of 79.59 cents US, down 0.08 of a U.S. cent and breaking its five-day streak of gains.
Elsewhere, the September natural gas contract shed 1.1 cents to $2.93 US per mmBTU, the December gold contract gained $3.70 to $1,294.70 US an ounce and the September copper contract fell about seven-tenths of a cent to $2.98 US a pound.
Vale to review Voisey’s nickel-mining operation
MONTREAL — Global mining giant Vale’s decision to review its global operations in light of depressed nickel prices is causing anxiety among Indigenous workers at its Voisey’s Bay mine in Labrador.
As part of its 60-day audit, the Brazilian miner has put on hold a decision about an underground expansion project at the Atlantic mine that would create more than 400 jobs and extend its life for 15 years.
“These are some of the higher paying jobs you find in our communities,” said Darryl Shiwak, Lands and Natural Resources Minister for the Inuit people of Nunatsiavut. “So with the high unemployment rate and the amount of seasonal work, these jobs are extremely important.”
More than half of the workforce in the remote area accessible by plane is Inuit or Innu, while more than 80 per cent of contracts are with Indigenous-owned and operated businesses.
Pending the outcome of its review, Vale said it will be in a better position to know what the path forward for the underground project looks like. Detailed engineering and procurement related to the mine’s expansion which began last year is ongoing. Open-pit operations in Voisey’s Bay and Long Harbour are continuing as normal, without layoffs, Vale said.