Higher profits make markets rise

Strong earnings reports helped push the Toronto stock market higher Thursday. The S&P/TSX composite index climbed 58.35 points at 12,379.64, with investors giving a positive reception to earnings from clothing manufacturer Gildan Activewear and insurance company Manulife Financial, among others.

The Canadian dollar was off 0.02 of a cent (U.S.) to 99.18 cents.

Earnings reports and positive employment news helped push New York markets higher after they also lost ground on Wednesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 130.63 points to 14,831.58, the Nasdaq index was ahead 41.49 points to close at a 121⁄ 2- year high of 3,340.62 and the S&P 500 index was up 14.89 points at 1,597.59.

There was some positive employment news a day before the U.S. government releases its employment report for April.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment assistance fell last week to seasonally adjusted 324,000, the lowest since January 2008. “Everyone is looking to the April jobs numbers,” said Tyler Vernon, chief investment officer at Biltmore Capital in New York. Economists forecast that the U.S. economy added 160,000 jobs last month. That’s much better than the 88,000 added in March. “People are more confident that it was an anomaly last month and are looking for some bigger numbers.” Commodity prices were higher after the weak economic data Wednesday pushed prices sharply lower. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s metals and mining sector, which is down more than 20 per cent, year to date, was ahead 0.86 per cent Thursday, while July copper gained two cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange to $3.10, after having tumbled 11 cents Wednesday. The TSX gold sector moved slightly higher while June bullion recovered most of Wednesday’s loss, up $21.40 to $1,467.60 an ounce. The energy component on the TSX was ahead 0.49 per cent as the June contract for crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $2.96 to $93.99 a barrel.