By Ketki Saxena
Investing.com -- At 12:45 p.m. in Toronto, the S&P/TSX Composite Index was at 20,843.46 points, up 0.12% in the day’s trading. The Canadian benchmark reversed losses from earlier today to eke out a gain at midday, supported largely by the heavyweight energy sector.
Canada’s commodity heavy index tracked crude prices higher following Goldman Sachs’s price target increase for Brent. The investment bank raised its forecast for Brent crude by $10 to $135 a barrel for the period between the second half of 2022 and the first half of next year, citing unresolved structural deficits.
The crude market continues to be supported by the various embargos on Russian oil, low inventory and maxed out production in the U.S., and the Chinese reopening. Supply remains tight despite increases from OPEC+, which analysts worry may not be enough to combat the deficit.
However, nearly all TSX sectors barring energy (+1.86%), financials (+0.22%) and telecom (+0.75%) were in the red at midday, as risk sentiment continues to dominate the market ahead of U.S. CPI data due Friday, and following indications that the current level of inflation is far closer to the all-time high than previously calculated.
Shopify (TSX:SHOP) (4.34%) was the biggest gainer on the TSX today, following the approval of a 10-1 stock split, and the creation of a new “founder’s share” at the e-commerce company’s annual shareholder meeting today. Apart from Shopify, energy stocks Vermilion Energy (TSX:VET) (-4.29%), Baytex Energy (TSX:BTE) (+3.69%) and Crescent Point Energy (TSX:CPG) (3.57%) were the biggest gainers.
The biggest losers so far on the TSX today included Nutrien (TSX:NTR) (-3.95%), Capstone Mining Corp (TSX:CS)(-3.64%), NFI Group Inc (TSX:NFI) (-3.19%), Jamieson Wellness (TSX:JWEL) (-3.13%), and Canfor (TSX:CFP) Corporation (-2.91%).