The Canadian stock market remained mixed on Thursday, as investors continued to assess the U.S. Fed’s latest statement and economic projections. In a volatile session, the S&P/TSX Composite Index posted a minor 12-point gains to close at 20,027, primarily with the help of a sharp intraday recovery in crude oil prices.
On the one hand, the American central bank’s decision to hold the interest rates rate steady in its latest meeting drove a rally in the shares of financial, consumer cyclical, and industrial companies. On the other hand, concerns about more rate hikes by the end of this year kept healthcare, utilities, and technology stocks under pressure.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shares of First Quantum Minerals (TSX: FM) popped 7.6% to $33.31 per share, making it the top-performing TSX stock for the day. This rally in FM stock came after a Bloomberg report said that the Vancouver-headquartered mining firm recently rejected an informal takeover bid from the Toronto-based precious metals miner Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX).
“First Quantum indicated it wasn’t keen on a combination” with Barrick and “and declined to enter any substantive talks,” the report claimed, citing people with knowledge of the matter. After this news report came out, Barrick’s share prices fell 2.6% to $21.79 per share. On a year-to-date basis, FM stock is now up 17.7%, while ABX stock is down 6.1%.
Precision Drilling, Advantage Energy, and Spartan Delta were also among the top gainers on the Toronto Stock Exchange yesterday, as they inched up by more than 3% each.
On the flip side, Sandstorm Gold, Enghouse Systems, Converge Technology, and B2Gold dived by at least 3.5% each, making them the session’s worst performers.
Based on their daily trade volume, energy stocks like Suncor Energy, TC Energy, Enbridge, and Cenovus Energy were the most heavily traded TSX Composite components.
TSX today
Early Friday morning, commodity prices across the board were largely trading on a positive note, pointing to a slightly higher open for the resource-heavy TSX index today. While no major economic releases are due, I expect the Canadian market to remain volatile in the near term, as concerns about weakening U.S. manufacturing activity and a looming recession keep investors on edge.
Market movers on the TSX today
