Investing.com — Canada's main stock market, the S&P/TSX Composite closed up over 200 points, 0.93%, higher on Thursday, at its highest level since April 2022 as markets cheered further comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
Chairman Powell today reiterated that rate cuts are coming later this year, keeping alive bets of a move from the Fed in June.
The commodity-heavy Canadian index was also buoyed by a fifth consecutive record-close for gold as markets anticipate U.S. rate cuts.
The biggest gainers of the session on the S&P/TSX Composite were Linamar Corporation (TSX:LNR), which rose 11.44% or 7.27 points to trade at 70.82 after its fourth-quarter profit and sales rose compared with a year ago.
Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners LP added 6.37% or 1.97 points to end at 32.89 and Denison Mines Corp (TSX:DML) was up 6.05% or 0.15 points to 2.63 in late trade.
Biggest losers included Vermilion Energy (TSX:VET) Inc which lost 5.01% or 0.80 points to trade at 15.17, after the company topped estimates and reported robust free cash flow, but capital returns to shareholders disappointed.
Lithium Americas Corp (TSX:LAAC) declined 4.46% or 0.32 points to end at 6.85, in what has been a volatile few days for the stock after the announcement of a partnership with China’s Ganfeng Lithium.
First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FM) Ltd shed 3.79% or 0.51 points to 12.95 after Trade and Industry Minister Jorge Rivera estimated that the cost of the First Quantum’s Panama mine closure is estimated at around $800 million.
On Wall Street meanwhile, the S&P 500 closed at a record high, led by tech and another all time high from Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), while the Dow Jones and Nasdaq also closed well in the green.
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