Canada Stocks: TSX climbs after US inflation data; energy shares flat

Winpak

26/07/2024 15:37

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      U.S. prices rose moderately in June
    

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      Energy sector muted on lower oil prices
    

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      Winpak rises on PT raise
    

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      TSX up 0.8% 
    

  
 (Updated at 10:04 a.m. ET)
    By Shubham  Batra
       July 26 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index jumped
amid broader gains on Friday as investors cheered U.S. data that
showed inflation rose moderately in June, keeping hopes of a
U.S. rate cut intact for September.
    At 10:04 a.m. ET (1404 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's
S&P/TSX composite index  .GSPTSE  was up 181.7 points, or 0.8%,
at 22789.73 at open. The benchmark index is set to log its fifth
weekly incline, if gains hold.
    Investors' positions of an interest rate cut by the U.S.
central bank in September remained unchanged after prices in the
world's largest economy rose moderately last month.
    "I think the markets expect a rate cut now as opposed to
before. Many people have expected it to be pushed back and that
it was a probably a 50-50 probability that it would happen at
all this year," said Daniel Nowlan, managing director of Equity
Capital Markets Group at the National Bank of Canada.
    Money markets currently see an 87.5% chance of a rate cut by
the Federal Reserve in September.  0#FEDWATCH 
    All Canadian sectors were trading in the green after the
data, except energy  .SPTTEN  that was flat, as oil prices were
pressured by muted demand in China and hopes of a Gaza ceasefire
deal that could ease Middle East tensions and accompanying
supply concerns.  O/R 
    Rate-sensitive utilities  .GSPTTUT  and banks  .SPTTFS  were
up 0.7% and 0.9%, respectively, while materials shares
 .GSPTTMT  climbed 1.1% as gold prices rose more after the U.S.
data firmed up hopes of a rate cut.  GOL/ 
    Wall Street also gained on Friday, with the Nasdaq  .IXIC 
taking the lead, as most megacaps and chip stocks recovered,
while a largely in-line key inflation reading kept rate-cut bets
intact.
    In company news, packaging & containers company Winpak
 WPK.TO  was the top gainer on the TSX with a 5.3% jump after
brokerages BMO and CIBC raised price targets of the stock.
    Meanwhile, Canada will likely delay the sale of the Trans
Mountain oil pipeline until after the national election in 2025,
Bloomberg News reported.

 (Reporting by Shubham Batra and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru;
Editing by Shreya Biswas and Vijay Kishore)
 ((Shubham.Batra@thomsonreuters.com;))