Couple randomly attacked, 1 stabbed, by group of teens in Toronto, police say
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Strength in the energy sector combined with some positive economic news to kick off the trading week helped Canada's main stock index achieve triple-digit gains Monday.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 179.89 points at 21,537.45.
The gain came as U.S. stock markets were closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.
"It's been a good day for the TSX," said Pierre Cleroux, vice-president of research and chief economist for the Business Development Bank of Canada. "The TSX was positive very early today, and it kept the story all day."
Leading the charge was the energy sector, with the S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index up 1.72 per cent to 193.58. Some of the biggest winners were Advantage Oil & Gas Ltd., which was up 3.5 per cent; Baytex Energy Corp., which was up 3.1 per cent; and Arc Resources Ltd., up 3.09 per cent.
The March crude oil contract was up $1.68 cents at US$83.30 per barrel and the February natural gas contract was down approximately one cent at US$4.26 per mmBTU.
Cleroux said global demand for oil continues to outpace supply, which is the reason the benchmark West Texas Intermediate price has been so strong in recent months.
"The fundamental reason is the fact that we have underinvested in oil for the past several years, probably since 2014," he said. "There's not a lot of investment to increase the supply, and on top of that there have been political issues around the world, like OPEC maintaining a policy of not increasing supply. And Omicron doesn't seem to be slowing down the demand for oil around the world."
The strong performance of Canadian energy stocks indicates that investors believe elevated oil prices are here to stay, at least for a while, Cleroux added.
In addition to energy, Canadian banks also saw gains during Monday's trading, with the S&P/TSX Capped Financials Index up 1.15 per cent.
Cleroux said markets were likely reacting to two positive economic releases Monday. The Bank of Canada's quarterly survey of businesses -- which was conducted before the arrival of the Omicron variant -- showed business owners are concerned about rising inflation and supply chain challenges, but are generally feeling quite positive in terms of their recovery from the COVID-19-related recession.
That, in addition to Statistics Canada's November 2021 manufacturing numbers, help to paint an optimistic economic portrait, said Cleroux.
"Manufacturing sales increased about 2.6 per cent in November, so that's another positive piece of news that probably helped the markets today," he said.
The Canadian Real Estate Association said Monday annual home sales reached a new high in 2021, eclipsing the previous record set in 2020 by about 20 per cent.
In general, the Canadian economy is performing quite well, despite the current Omicron wave, Cleroux said.
"Personally as an economist I believe Omicron won't have a big impact on growth this year, and I think a lot of economists share that," he said. "So that's probably reflected in why the market's increasing as well."
The Canadian dollar traded for 79.87 cents US compared with 79.71 cents US on Friday.
The February gold contract was down US$4.90 at US$1,816.50 an ounce and the March copper contract was down 13 cents at US$4.42 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2022.
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Ron Ellis, who played over 1,000 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs and was a member of Canada's team at the 1972 Summit Series, has died at age 79.
The wildfire that sparked Friday and caused evacuation orders for more than 3,000 people in Fort Nelson, B.C., and the nearby Fort Nelson First Nation, has grown to nearly 1,700 hectares in size, according to a Saturday morning update from the BC Wildfire Service.
Hours before the final, Dutch contestant Joost Klein was dramatically booted out by organizers over a backstage incident. He had failed to perform at two dress rehearsals on Friday, and contest organizer the European Broadcasting Union said it was investigating an "incident."
From London, to Grand Bend, Collingwood and Guelph, here are some highlights of Friday night and Saturday morning's northern lights display.
A growing number of civilians and police officers are demanding the dismissal and arrest of Haiti's police chief as heavily armed gangs launched a new attack in the capital of Port-au-Prince, seizing control of yet another police station early Saturday.
Irresponsibly using a credit card can land you in financial trouble, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says when used properly, it can be a powerful wealth-building tool that can help grow your credit profile and create new opportunities.
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
The rolling hills leading to the hamlet of Rosebud are dotted with sprawling farms and cattle pastures -- and a sign sporting a simple message: No Race Track.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.