(Reuters) - Canada's main stock index rose on Thursday, buoyed by energy stocks as oil prices rose on output shutdowns in the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Delta and potential supply disruptions in Norway.
* The energy sector climbed 1.2% as U.S. crude prices gained 2.6% a barrel and Brent crude added 2.6%. [O/R]
* At 9:38 a.m. ET (13:38 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was up 70.16 points, or 0.43%, at 16,498.46.
* The nation's housing starts fell by more than expected in September compared with the previous month as groundbreaking tumbled on multiple unit urban homes, data from the national housing agency showed.
* The financials sector gained 0.1%, while the industrials sector rose 0.2%.
* The materials sector, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, added 1.2%.
* On the TSX, 192 issues were higher, while 22 declined for a 8.73-to-1 ratio favouring gainers, with 9.29 million shares traded.
* The largest percentage gainer was Bausch Health Companies Inc, which jumped 7.4% after the drugmaker estimated Q3 revenue to be more than $2.1 billion, above analysts' expectation of $1.97 billion.
* Torex Gold Resources Inc followed with a 6.3% increase after the gold miner delivered its second-highest quarter of production on record.
* Tourmaline Oil Corp fell 1%, the most on the TSX, and the second biggest decliner was Richelieu Hardware Ltd, down 0.8%.
* The most heavily traded shares by volume were Denison Mines Corp, Vivo Cannabis Inc and D-BOX Technologies Inc.
* The TSX posted seven new 52-week highs and no new lows.
* Across all Canadian issues, there were 17 new 52-week highs and two new lows, with total volume of 21.92 million shares.
