FX.co ★ TSX Ends Moderately Higher

On Thursday, the Canadian market experienced a brief early rise and subsequent drop before recovering and ending the day on a strong note. This positive shift was primarily attributed to comments from the Bank of India Governor, Tiff Macklem, hinting at a near-future reduction of interest rates. These sentiments were echoed by the Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, who also suggested that the central bank's next rate move is likely to be an interest rate cut.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index, Canada's benchmark index, witnessed a noteworthy rise, climbing from an early low point to 21,889.26 before finally closing out the trading session with a 94.67 point gain, or 0.44%, at 21,823.22.

Industrials, utilities, and real estate stocks were among the most successful sectors of the day, while healthcare stocks saw a slide. The performance of the remaining sectors was mixed, as investors largely reacted to company earnings reports.

Thomson Reuters (TRI.TO) experienced a nearly 7% rise due to reporting an operating profit of US$556 million for Q1 2024, a notable improvement over the US$508 million registered in the same quarter the previous year.

Shares in Gfl Environmental (GFL.TO), Russel Metals (RUS.TO), Bombardier Inc. (BBD.B.TO), Stantec (STN.TO), and Ballard Power Systems (BLDP.TO) also saw substantial gains of between 2.75 and 4.5%, while WSP Global (WSP.TO), Element Fleet (EFN.TO), Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP.TO), Cae Inc. (CAE.TO) and Tfi International (TFII.TO) enjoyed gains of between 1.5 and 2.2%.

Brookfield Renewable Partners (BEP.UN.TO) surged 5.3% and Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (AQN.TO) increased by about 3.5%. Granite Real Estate (GRT.UN.TO), FirstService Corp (FSV.TO), and several others also witnessed gains of 1.5 to 2.2%.

However, some companies experienced losses. Bausch Health Companies (BHC.TO) saw a fall of more than 8% even after reporting increased earnings. Similarly, Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI.TO) declined almost 4% despite showing a turnaround in profits. Air Canada (AC.TO) also saw its shares drop by 8% after reporting a first-quarter net loss of $81 million.

Economic data from Statistics Canada revealed that Canada registered a trade deficit of C$2.28 billion in March, as both exports and imports showed a decline.