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Canada’s main stock index was higher on Monday as mining stocks rose on the back of climbing gold prices.

At 11:30 a.m. ET, the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX Composite index was up 26.98 points, or 0.2 per cent, at 15,444.66.

The materials group added 0.7 per cent as gold prices rose more than 1 per cent.

Investors parked their funds in the safe-haven asset after a slide in European equities compounded fears on global stock markets.

Barrick Gold Corp. jumped 2.6 per cent in morning trading, while Teck Resources Ltd. advanced 1.9 per cent.

However, the financials sector fell 0.3 per cent. Manulife Financial Corp. fell 1.2 per cent, while Sun Life Financial Inc. and Great-West Lifeco Inc. dipped 0.6 per cent.

The Bank of Canada said Canadian business optimism remained at near record-levels in the third quarter, with companies reporting rising pressure on capacity, labor and prices amid signs of stronger sales.

The Canadian dollar edged higher against the greenback on Monday ahead of the release of a business survey by the Bank of Canada.

Canopy Growth Corp. jumped 8.5 per cent after announced an agreement to acquire the assets of ebbu, Inc., a Colorado-based hemp research company.

Trading on Wall Street remains uneven Monday as U.S. stocks head slightly higher after some sharp early losses. Technology companies continue to slump, but high-dividend stocks like household goods makers and real estate companies are gaining ground. The S&P 500 and other major U.S. indexes are coming off their worst week since late March as investors worry about rising interest rates and trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Bank of America dropped after it reported disappointing growth in loans.

The S&P 500 index added 3 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 2,770 as of 11:30 a.m. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 79 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 25,419. The Nasdaq composite dipped 13 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 7,483. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks rose 5 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 1,552.

The S&P 500 rallied Friday but lost 4.1 per cent last week, its biggest decline in more than six months. It’s fallen for three weeks in a row.

The technology companies that have led the market higher in recent years, including some of the world’s most valuable companies, continued to decline. Apple gave up 1.1 per cent to $219.76 and software maker Adobe fell 2.5 per cent to $242.59. Chipmaker Nvidia skidded 2.4 per cent to $240.71.

The S&P 500 index of technology companies has dropped 7.2 per cent since setting a record high on Oct. 3. The Nasdaq, which has a high concentration of tech stocks, is down 7.7 per cent since late August.

Netflix, which will report its results Tuesday, lost 1.4 per cent to $334.68. It’s plunged 23 per cent since it reported weak user growth three months ago.

Bank of America’s third-quarter profit and revenue were better than analysts expected, but Wall Street was disappointed with the company’s loan growth. The company has emphasized responsible growth recently, and like other banks, it’s benefiting from last year’s corporate tax cut and rising interest rates. Its stock slid 2.7 per cent to $27.69. Competitor Wells Fargo also reported weak loan growth on Friday.

U.S. consumer spending edged up 0.1 per cent in September, according to the Commerce Department. A rebound in car sales was cancelled out by weak results elsewhere. Economists had projected a solid 0.6 per cent rise in sales. Sales also grew just 0.1 per cent in August, and the current stretch is the weakest two-month performance since the start of the year.

Retailers were mixed. Amazon fell 1.2 per cent to $1,767.75 and Michael Kors fell 1.3 per cent to $62.81, but Gap rose 1.8 per cent to $27.14 and Dollar General picked up 1.9 per cent to $106.74.

France’s CAC 40 added 0.1 per cent while Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.4 per cent. Germany’s DAX climbed 0.7 per cent.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 dipped 1.9 per cent and the South Korean Kospi edged down 0.8 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.5 per cent.

Global stock indexes have been struggling this year as investors move money to the U.S. and out of Europe and Asia in response to faster economic growth in the U.S. and rising trade tensions. The losses the last few weeks for global markets have made it even worse.

The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong has fallen 22 per cent since early January, meeting Wall Street’s definition of a “bear market,” or a decline of 20 per cent form a recent peak. A number of other indexes have fallen at least 10 per cent, known as a “correction.” Those include the DAX and Kospi, which both peaked in late January, as well as the FTSE 100, the Ibex in Spain and the FTSE MIB in Italy, which peaked in May.

Oil prices steadied on Monday, supported by geopolitical tension over the disappearance of a Saudi journalist, which has stoked worries about supplies from the world’s top crude exporter, but weighed by a falling equities market and concern over long-term demand outlook.

Brent crude futures rose 33 cents to $80.76 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 27 cents to $71.61 a barrel.

Last week, both contracts fell by more than 4 percent as U.S. stock markets tumbled.

U.S. stock markets fell broadly on Monday, weighing on crude. Oil futures at times track with equity markets.

However, rising geopolitical tension between the U.S., the world’s top oil consumer, and Saudi Arabia, one of the biggest oil producers supported prices on Monday.

Riyadh has been under pressure since journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of the kingdom and a U.S. resident, disappeared on Oct. 2 after visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened “severe punishment” if it is found that Khashoggi was killed in the consulate.

Reuters and The Associated Press

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Tickers mentioned in this story

Study and track financial data on any traded entity: click to open the full quote page. Data updated as of 27/03/24 4:00pm EDT.

SymbolName% changeLast
MFC-T
Manulife Fin
+1.83%33.43
BAC-N
Bank of America Corp
+1.94%37.81
GWO-T
Great-West Lifeco Inc
+0.33%42.92
WFC-N
Wells Fargo & Company
+1.64%57.61
SLF-T
Sun Life Financial Inc
+0.05%73.8
AAPL-Q
Apple Inc
+2.12%173.31
ABX-T
Barrick Gold Corp
+4.22%21.99
WEED-T
Canopy Growth Corp
+32.55%12.95

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