'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Canada's main stock index reached record highs on a broad rally led by the strength of the financial and energy sectors as the price of oil climbed past US$82 per barrel.
"Great day, on the heels of a great day yesterday," Allan Small, senior investment adviser at IA Private Wealth, said Friday.
"It looks like we're on a bit of a roll coming out of the September funk."
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 108.16 points to 20,928.10 after reaching an intraday high of 20,969.36. The market climbed 2.5 per cent over the Thanksgiving holiday-shortened week for its best performance since early March.
The Toronto market is up 4.3 per cent so far in October and 20 per cent year-to-date.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 382.20 points at 35,294.76. The S&P 500 index was up 33.11 points at 4,471.37, while the Nasdaq composite was up 73.91 points at 14,897.34.
The three main sectors on the TSX were "on fire" for much of the day, Small said, as the heavyweight financials sectors led, oil prices pushed energy up despite a drop in natural gas prices, and copper helped materials even though gold fell.
Financials gained nearly per cent with the Toronto-Dominion Bank up 1.8 per cent and Bank of Montreal 1.5 per cent higher as the banks moved up in sympathy with the U.S. banks that have reported strong quarterly results.
Positive signs from U.S. banks, such as improving loan loss provisions, may be echoed when Canadian banks report results next month.
"So just a general good feeling in the markets right now," Small said in an interview, adding that economic data such as U.S. retail sales were above analyst expectations.
He said there's a general sense that supply chain and COVID-19 constraints are getting better and inflation should start to abate a little bit.
"If that is true, then we could see higher markets moving forward."
Energy increased as crude oil prices continued to march higher, helping to boost MEG Energy Corp. climb 2.1 per cent and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. gain 1.9 per cent.
The November crude contract was up 97 cents at US$82.28 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down 27.7 cents at US$5.41 per mmBTU.
The Canadian dollar traded for 80.78 cents US compared with 80.83 cents US on Thursday.
Materials was slightly higher with First Quantum Minerals Ltd. up eight per cent.
The December gold contract was down US$29.60 at US$1,768.30 an ounce and the December copper contract was up 9.8 cents at US$4.73 a pound.
Technology was one of seven sectors that gained on the day as shares of Hut 8 Mining Inc. surged 15.4 per cent as the digital currency miner benefited from the price of Bitcoin moving above US$60,000.
Small said Bitcoin has climbed on reports that the U.S. may soon offer a Bitcoin or cryptocurrency ETF that is already available in Canada.
He said markets posted great ends to another volatile week.
"And in my opinion, I think volatility continues. But I think we are higher come Dec. 31 than we are today. It's just going to be a bit choppy getting there, but I think we can still move higher before year-end."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2021.
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
English, history, entertainment, math and geography: high school trivia teams could be quizzed on any of it when they compete at the Reach for the Top Nationals in Ottawa in June.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
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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.