Energy stocks allowed Toronto’s main board to close higher Monday despite a loss from major U.S. bank Wachovia and a general wariness among investors in most sectors.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 55.57 points, or 0.41%, at 13,738.60.
Eight of the 10 major TSX groups fell today.
The energy group closed up 2.63%,
Crude oil for May delivery gained US$1.62, or 1.5%, to finish at US$111.76 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the day it hit a high of US$111.99 a barrel, nearing the record high of US$112.21 reached Wednesday.
Talisman Energy Inc. shares gained 62¢, or 3.19%, to finish the session at $20.06.
The materials group closed up 0.61%.
However, Teck Cominco Ltd. shares fell 91¢, or 1.95%, to close at $45.70, after it announced a takeover bid for Global Copper Corp. According to the deal, Teck will pay $12 or 0.26667 of a Teck class B share for each Global share.
The gold sub-index closed up 0.09%, as gold for June delivery gained US$1.70 to end at US$928.70 an ounce on the Nymex.
Goldcorp Inc. shares gained 48¢, or 1.19%, to end at $40.81.
The financials group closed down 1.02%.
Royal Bank of Canada shares fell 58¢, or 1.25%, to close at $45.80, while TD Bank stock fell 9¢, or 0.14%, to finish at $62.97.
In other corporate news, First Calgary Petroleums Ltd. CEO Richard Anderson was ousted as part of a deal with major shareholder, Waterford Finance & Investment Ltd. Shane O’Leary, a former COO at First Calgary, replaced him. The company’s stock closed up 69¢, or 29.87%, to end at $3.
As well, Astral Media Inc. shares gained 31¢, or 0.86%, to close at $35.75, after it reported Q2 earnings rose 18% rise.
The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index fell 9.68 points, or 0.38%, to 2,547.66.
The Canadian dollar closed out at US98.08¢, up 0.37 of a cent from Friday’s close.
In New York, flat retail sales results for the month of March didn’t help when piled on top of a quarterly loss from U.S. bank Wachovia and lingering fears from GE’s grim results last week.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 23.36 points, or 0.19%, to end at 12,302.06. The S&P 500 lost 4.51 points, or 0.34%, to close at 1,328.32.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index also slipped, closing down 14.42 points, or 0.63%, at 2,275.82.