The Canadian stock market remained largely choppy on Wednesday, as investors eagerly awaited important consumer and wholesale inflation data from the United States. Despite soaring by 60 points in intraday trading, the S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the session with minor 18-point gains yesterday to settle at 20,989.
While technology, consumer, and industrial stocks continued to rally, the upward movement of the TSX benchmark was limited by declines in market sectors such as healthcare, financials, and real estate.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shares of Africa Oil (TSX:AOI) jumped by more than 7% to $2.55 per share. This rally in AOI stock came after the Vancouver-headquartered energy firm announced a strategic deal related to its offshore Namibia interests through its investee company, Impact Oil and Gas Limited.
The deal announced by Africa Oil involves a farmout agreement with TotalEnergies’s wholly-owned subsidiary in Namibia, where Impact will retain a 9.5% interest in Blocks 2912 and 2913B. The agreement also includes a full carry of all joint venture costs until the first commercial production and a cash reimbursement for past costs. After ending 2023 without any change, Africa Oil stock has risen 2.4% so far in January.
Filo, Torex Gold, and BlackBerry (TSX: BB) were also among the top-performing TSX stocks yesterday as they climbed by over 4% each.
The latest round of rallies in BlackBerry stock started earlier this week after it announced a key development related to its IoT (Internet of Things) sector. On January 9, The Waterloo-based software firm revealed that the Mobility in Harmony (MIH) Consortium, a Foxconn initiative, has chosen the BlackBerry IVY platform to power its next-generation electric vehicles.
In contrast, Tilray Brands, Birchcliff Energy, Canfor, and Lundin Gold slipped by at least 3% each, making them the session’s bottom performers on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Based on their daily trade volume, TD Bank, TC Energy, Power Corporation of Canada, Suncor Energy, and Enbridge were the five most active stocks on the exchange.
TSX today
Most commodity prices, except natural gas, were trading on a firm note early Thursday morning, which could lift the resource-heavy TSX index at the open today.
While no major domestic economic releases are due, the important monthly consumer inflation report and weekly jobless claims data from the United States will remain on Canadian investors’ radar this morning, which could give further direction to TSX stocks.
Market movers on the TSX today
