Surging metals prices helped the Canadian stock market resume its upward trend on Wednesday, even as the U.S. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell hinted again that the central bank might wait for more signs of easing inflationary pressures before slashing interest rates. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 37 points, or 0.2%, yesterday to settle at 22,112.
Despite an intraday selloff in sectors like tech, real estate, and consumer cyclicals, strong gains in healthcare and mining stocks raised the TSX benchmark.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shares of Tilray Brands (TSX:TLRY) jumped nearly 17% to $3.84 per share, making it the top-performing TSX stock for the day. This rally in TLRY stock began after the cannabis giant announced 420 celebrations across Canada with a new product lineup across its cannabis brands.
Tilray also said it’s partnering with over 1,000 Canadian cannabis retailers for educational events. The company’s new lineup includes various products such as Redecan Space Age Cake, Good Supply Melon Dream, and Broken Coast EmergenZ, among others. These are available in select provinces, and there are plans for nationwide expansion. With this, TLRY stock now trades with 25.5% year-to-date gains.
First Majestic Silver, Fortuna Silver Mines, and Precision Drilling were also among the top gainers on the Toronto Stock Exchange as they inched up by at least 7.2% each.
On the flip side, WSP Global dived by 5.4% to $208.45 per share after the New York-based short-seller, Spruce Point Capital, revealed its short position in the stock. The short-seller alleges “opaque financial reporting” by the Montréal-based firm and claims WSP stock has around “25% to 50% downside risk.”
Shopify and Interfor were also among the worst-performing TSX stocks yesterday, as they plunged by at least 3.4% each.
According to the exchange’s daily trade volume data, TC Energy, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Baytex Energy, B2Gold, and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce were the day’s five most active stocks.
TSX today
After rallying for several sessions in a row, crude oil and base metals prices were largely mixed early Thursday morning, pointing to a flat opening for the commodity-heavy main TSX index today.
While no major domestic economic releases are due, Canadian investors may want to monitor the latest initial jobless claims data from the United States this morning. Overall, Powell’s recent comments about inflation and interest rates could continue to keep TSX stocks volatile in the near term.