TSX benchmark hits new record high

Shares in oil and gas companies led the charge, with energy “having a really good day,” said Peggy Bowie, senior equity trader at Manulife Asset Management.

The energy sector gained on average 2.61% as the price of oil rose, with the December crude contract gaining US$1.26 to US$53.90 per barrel.

“It’s definitely, I would have to say, buoyancy on the hope of growth,” Bowie said of the commodity’s upward movement.

The promise of growth in the American market coupled with OPEC’s upcoming November meeting where members may decide to extend their production cuts is moving the price of oil, she said.

Shares in the gold sector also helped lift the TSX, gaining 0.72% on average, as the December gold contract advanced US$2.20 to US$1,271.80 an ounce.

On Wall Street, two indices had record-setting growth. The S&P 500 index advanced 20.67 points to 2,581.07 and the Nasdaq composite index climbed 144.49 points to 6,701.26.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 33.33 points to 23,434.19.

“Today is a fascinating day because of tech,” said Bowie. “Very strong numbers blew everything out of the water.”

Two tech giants, Alphabet and Microsoft, beat analyst expectations with their most recent earnings reports, sending their stocks up 5.1% and 7.5% respectively. Intel, Apple and Facebook shares all moved up as well.

The tech sector boost came on the same day the U.S. Commerce Department said the American economy grew 3% cent between July and September. The GDP growth was larger than expected and didn’t dip despite two major hurricanes during that time.

In currency markets, the Canadian dollar was trading at an average price of US77.68¢, down 0.26 of a U.S. cent.

Elsewhere in commodities, the December natural gas contract shed nearly US9¢ to about US$2.96 per mmBTU and the December copper contract dropped about US7¢ to roughly US$3.10 a pound.

With files from the Associated Press