Canadian Market Up Firmly In Positive Territory

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks are up in positive territory around noon on Friday, tracking firm U.S. stocks after a closely watched inflation data from the Commerce Department has added to confidence about an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September.

Technology stocks are up, bouncing back from recent losses. Healthcare, real estate, industrials, financials and materials shares are among the other notable gainers. Energy stocks are weak, while shares from the rest of the sectors are turning in a mixed performance.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index is up 156.10 points or 0.69% at 22,764.13 a few minutes before noon.

Winpak Ltd. (WPK.TO) is gaining 5.4%. Celestica Inc (CLS.TO) is rising 4.3%. Newmont Corporation (NGT.TO), West Fraser Timber (WFG.TO), BRP Inc (DOO.TO) and Colliers International (CIGI.TO) are up 2.3 to 3.2%.

WSP Global (WSP.TO), Canadian National Railway (CNR.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), Intact Financial Corporation (IFC.TO), Fairfax Financial Holdings (FFH.TO), Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO) and goeasy (GSY.TO) are up 1 to 2%.

Advantage Energy (AAV.TO) is down 6.7%. Bombardier Inc (BBD.A.TO), Premium Brands Holdings Corporation (PBH.TO), Linamar Corporation (LNR.TO) and George Weston (WN.TO) are down 0.8 to 1.6%.

Canfor Corp (CFP.TO) announced on Thursday that its adjusted loss widened to $168.7 million, or $1.42 per share, in the second quarter, from $44.3 million, or $0.36 per share, last year. The stock is down marginally.

Eldorado Gold Inc., (ELD.TO) is gaining 3.5% after reporting adjusted earnings of US$66.6 million for the second-quarter, up from US$9.7 million in the year-ago quarter.

MEG Energy Corp (MEG.TO) is down nearly 1%. The company reported net earnings of $234 million for the first-half of the current financial year, compared to $217 million in the first-half of 2023.

On the economic front, a report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said the Canada Business Barometer, a long-term index reflecting 12-month forward expectations for business performance in the country, dipped to 55.4 in July, down marginally from a downwardly revised 56.0 in the previous month.

A report from Statistics Canada said wholesale sales in Canada declined by 0.6% month-over-month in June, following a 0.8% decline in May, according to preliminary estimates.