By Purvi Agarwal and Fergal Smith
(Reuters) -Canada’s main stock index rose to a 20-month high on Thursday as higher oil prices boosted energy shares and hopes rose of a soft landing for the U.S. economy.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended up 75.76 points, or 0.4%, at 21,101.54, its highest closing level since May 2022.
The U.S. economy expanded at an annualized rate of 3.3% in the fourth quarter, with the growth faster-than-expected and surprisingly accompanied by ebbing inflation.
“The big story today is the blowout GDP numbers,” said Brandon Michael, senior investment analyst at ABC Funds. “We have the best of all worlds, robust growth, moderating inflation and strong corporate performance. There are many reasons to be bullish on stocks.”
The energy sector rose 1.6% as U.S. crude oil futures settled 3% higher at $77.36 a barrel.
The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, also gained ground, adding 0.6%, as the price of gold rose.
The utilities group was up 1.3%, supported by a decline in long-term borrowing costs. The Canadian 10-year yield eased 2.1 basis points to 3.480%.
(Reporting by Fergal Smith in Toronto and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Ravi Prakash Kumar and Deepa Babington)
