By Ketki Saxena
Investing.com – The TSX recovered from the morning’s losses by late afternoon trading, along with Wall Street, as banking jitters calmed. Credit Suisse’s stock jumped after its plan strengthen its finances by borrowing up to 50 billion Swiss francs (US$54 billion) from the Swiss National Bank.
First Republic Bank meanwhile rose after slumping earlier following news that big banks including JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) are discussing a potential deal that could mean a big infusion of cash for the bank.
The commodity heavy Canadian index also gained support from crude prices, which rose from 15 month lows 2% on reports of meetings between Saudi Arabia and Russia to discuss market stabilization.
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Convenience store operator Alimentation Couche-Tard has stock a deal to buy almost 2,200 gas stations from TotalEnergies European retail assets for €3.1B in cash. Couche-Tard will now have 100% of TotalEnergies retail assets in Germany and the Netherlands, along with a 60% interest in Total’s Belgium and Luxembourg units. Couche-Tard operates about 2,800 locations in Europe already prior to the deal, mostly in Scandinavia and the Baltics.
Empire Company Ltd., the parent company of grocers Sobey’s, net earnings hit $125.7 million in its latest quarter compared with $203.4 million in net earnings during the same period the year before. The company's earnings for the period ended Feb. 4 amounted to 49 cents per share, down from 77 cents per share in the third quarter of the prior fiscal year, as its Sobeys supermarket chain rebounded from a November cyberattack. Its adjusted net earnings totalled $164.8 million, down from $203.4 million a year earlier.
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The Canadian Chamber of Commerce says businesses expect subdued sales in the short term as they face continued cost and labour pressures, despite slowing inflation. A third of companies expect to raise prices next quarter. Most companies are concerned about labour challenges, which businesses plan to address through higher wages, more flexible work arrangements, and enhanced training.