TORONTO -- Canada's main index again crept higher on a broad-based rally as investors continued to digest November's solid gains.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 39.81 points to 17,398.02.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 85.73 points at 29,969.52. The S&P 500 index was down 2.29 points at 3,666.72, while the Nasdaq composite was up 27.82 points at 12,377.18.

The Canadian dollar traded for 77.64 cents US compared with 77.32 cents US on Wednesday when it reached its highest level since October 2018.

The January crude contract was up 36 cents at US$45.64 per barrel and the January natural gas contract was down 27.3 cents at nearly US$2.51 per mmBTU.

The February gold contract was up US$10.90 at US$1,841.10 an ounce and the March copper contract was up 0.15 of a cent at US$3.49 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2020.