Canadian Equities Edge Higher on Materials Gains

(RTTNews) – Canadian equities rose in positive territory shortly after noon on Friday, bolstered by gains in materials, financials, and consumer discretionary sectors.

Shares in real estate, healthcare, industrials, and communications also posted gains, whereas energy stocks lagged.

Investors responded to recent corporate earnings releases and the latest Canadian economic data.

Concerns over Middle East tensions and expectations of monetary tightening by central banks such as the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Canada are tempering upside potential.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 234.58 points (0.67%) to 35,427.24 around one hour past noon.

FirstService Corporation rose nearly 6%, reporting second‑quarter earnings per share of $1.75, up from $1.71 a year earlier.

Thomson Reuters, Colliers International Group, CGI Inc., Constellation Software, Onex Corporation, Discovery Mining, Open Text Corporation, K92 Mining, Power Corporation of Canada, OceanaGold Corporation, Air Canada, Kinross Gold, Teck Resources, Wheaton Precious Metals, and Bombardier each posted gains of 2% to 4%.

Celestica Inc fell 5.5% and Saputo declined 4.3%. Athabasca Oil Corp., Methanex, Tamarack Valley Energy, Strathcona Resources, Hut 8 Corp., West Fraser Timber, Cameco, Cenovus Energy, Mda Space, and Nutrien each dropped 1% to 3%.

Canadian National Railway reported Q2 net income of C$1.25 billion, up from C$1.17 billion a year earlier, with earnings per share of C$2.06 versus C$1.87. The share price slipped about 0.5%.

Economic data showed Canada’s industrial product price index declined 1.4% in June from the prior month—the steepest drop since December 2023—while annual producer prices rose 12.4% in June after a 13.6% increase the previous month.

Raw material prices slipped 6.9% in June after a modest 0.5% rise in May, yet they remained 20.7% higher year‑over‑year, building on a 33.4% surge in May.

Wholesale sales rose 2.7% in June, according to preliminary figures, whereas manufacturing sales edged down 0.1%.

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