In this Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014 photo, American flags fly in front of the New York Stock Exchange, in New York. A strong report on job creation pushed stock indexes higher Friday, Dec. 5, 2014, even though the figures may prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates sooner than anticipated. The dollar rose as traders anticipated more robust growth in the U.S. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)The Associated Press
U.S. stocks are back at record highs as the market posts its fourth gain in a row.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 154 points, or 0.9 per cent, to 17,959 Monday, narrowly beating the record high it set two weeks ago by about half a point.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose seven points, or 0.4 per cent, to 2,078. It was the 50th closing high for the S&P 500 this year.
The Nasdaq rose sixteen points, or 0.3 per cent, to 4,781.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended down 35.88 points, or 0.25 per cent, at 14,432.38.
The tumbling price of crude, its value almost halved since June, has stung Canada's large energy sector, but could ultimately help boost the broader economy as consumers and businesses save money at the pump that can be spent elsewhere.
"In the long haul, it probably puts us on a higher trajectory because there will be a boost of discretionary income that can go into spending and consumption," said Rick Hutcheon, president and chief operating officer at RKH Investments.
Oil and gas stocks have fallen sharply in recent weeks, but most ticked higher last week after one among them, Talisman Energy Inc., was acquired by oil major Repsol.
"I think the energy stocks are higher than where they probably should be," said Norman Levine, managing director at Portfolio Management Corp. "Last week as soon as the bid for Talisman was announced, they all jumped up as though they were all going to get taken over."
Crude fell on Monday as Saudi Arabia made clear it would not limit its production in order to prod prices higher.
Canadian Natural Resources was off 1.6 per cent at $36.04 and Encana Corp fell 4.2 per cent to $15.72.
Gold miners were also down as bullion fell, with Goldcorp Inc. off 5.2 per cent at $20.19 and Barrick Gold Corp. down 4.5 per cent at $12.02.
An exception to the energy decline, Suncor Energy Inc., added 2.2 per cent to $36.88.
Toronto-Dominion Bank rose 0.8 per cent to $54.44 and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce added 1.7 per cent to $100.76.
The railways also gained, with Canadian National Railway Co. up 1.6 per cent at $78.66 and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. adding 1.4 per cent to $223.
Levine said life insurance companies will likely do better than banks in a rising interest rate environment, while telecom stocks could also win favor as investors turn more defensive after the oil price rout.
"The Canadian economy will not be as strong as the U.S. economy, and not as strong as it was going to be before because of the hit to commodities," he said.
With files from Reuters