TORONTO — Canada's main stock market index ticked higher on Friday to cap a week of gains, while U.S. markets were mixed.
“It has been a bit of a rebound week,” said Michael Currie, senior investment adviser at TD Wealth, after last week saw a rough start to the month of August. Markets seem a little more optimistic than they did last week, he said.
In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite ended Friday up 0.85 per cent on the week, closing up 64.76 points on Friday at 20,407.64.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average increased 105.25 points to 35,281.40. The S&P 500 index dipped 4.78 points to 4,464.05, while the Nasdaq composite decreased 93.14 points to 13,644.85.
The Nasdaq ended down 1.9 per cent for the week amid a continued selloff in tech after the sector saw a “tremendous start to the year,” said Currie.
August is normally one of the worst months on the market as investors engage in some profit-taking around this time of year, he noted.
Friday saw a new report on producer prices in the U.S., which rose faster last month than in June. That came a day after the latest inflation print, which also reported prices rose faster in July.
While these could be taken as signs that the Federal Reserve’s tightening work on the economy isn’t done, Currie said investors seem to be looking at the bigger picture.
“People are saying that overall it's an easing of inflation,” he said. “The headline number appears to be higher, but the market’s taking it as, generally, it’s not that bad.”
That reaction may have been helped by a preliminary reading in a University of Michigan survey which showed consumer sentiment and inflation expectations ticked lower in July.
“The markets are taking (both reports) in a generally positive light,” said Currie.
The price of oil continued to rise this week, hovering above US$83 per barrel Friday.
“It's a seven-week winning streak for oil prices globally,” said Currie, despite a quiet start to the year for crude. Cuts from OPEC plus have helped buoy oil prices, he said, and summer demand has also been behind the boost. Meanwhile, despite China’s flagging economy, a recent report showed much of the growth in oil demand is coming from that major economy.
The September crude oil contract was up 37 cents at US$83.19 per barrel and the September natural gas contract was up one cent at US$2.77 per mmBTU.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.39 cents US compared with 74.58 cents US on Thursday.
The December gold contract was down US$2.30 at US$1,946.60 an ounce and the September copper contract was down five cents at US$3.72 a pound.
— With files from The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 11, 2023.
Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)
Rosa Saba, The Canadian Press
