Key Canadian index, the S&P/TSX Composite index, closed higher for the fourth consecutive day and added 122.95 points or 0.71% to 17,520.97 on Friday. During the day trading hours, the index tested an intraday high of 17,525.74 and a day low of 17,437.45, respectively. The index has added approximately 9.51% over one-month period and featured price return of ~ 4% on a year-over-year (YoY) basis.
At the close, the index featured a dividend yield of 3.35% and traded at a Price-to-Earnings (P/E) multiple of 19.51x, respectively.
S&P/TSX Composite 5-day Price Chart; Source: Refinitiv (Thomson Reuters)
Energy, the best performing sector on the S&P/TSX Composite, gained 3.46% with MEG Energy Corp surging 10.93% and Crescent Point Energy Corp adding 9.88%. Metal & Mining sector also surged higher and added 3.21% on the broader exchange.
The Canadian labour force survey showed strong gains for November, adding 62,000 positions, and the unemployment rate falling to 8.5 per cent. Despite the gains, the pace of job growth slowed from October.
Sector Summary*
Gainers: Energy (up 3.46%), Academic and Education Services (up 2.77%), and Industrials (up 1.19%)
Losers: Technology (down 0.60%), and Healthcare (down 0.56%)
Source: Refinitiv (Thomson Reuters)
Stocks in Play*
Gainers: BlackBerry Ltd (up 13.23%), MEG Energy Corp (up 10.93%), and Crescent Point Energy Corp (up 9.88%)
Losers: Crescent Point Energy Corp (down 7.97%), Trillium Therapeutics Inc (down 6.75%), and Richelieu Hardware Ltd (down 5.47%)
Volume Leaders: Suncor Energy Inc., Canadian Natural Resources Limited and Aurora Cannabis Inc.
On Wall Street: Stocks on the Wall Street ended higher with all the three benchmark stock indices closing at all-time highs on positive global cues. The S&P 500 index was up 32.40 points to 3,699.12, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 248.74 points to 30,218.26 and the Nasdaq composite rising by 87.05 points to 12,464.23.
Commodity News*
The February gold contract was down USD 1.10 at USD 1,840.00/oz on Friday.
Brent Oil Futures extended gains on Friday by 1.11% to US$ 49.25/bbl and Crude WTI Futures surged 1.36% to US$ 46.26/bbl.
Canadian Dollar further strengthened against the US Greenback with CAD/USD pair increased 0.63% to 0.7822 on Friday.
*All details as on December 4, 2020, after markets close