Stock markets in Canada, the U.S. and Europe bounced back in early trading Wednesday, as fears about European debt declined a day after spiking.
Almost all sub sectors of the major North American indices showed gains, lead by basic materials, industrials and financials.
Canadian Western Bank and Teck Resources climbed more than 2 per cent.
Alcoa also gained 2 per cent. U.S. financials that include American Express, JP Morgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America all rose about 1 per cent.
In Toronto, the S&P/TSX rose 38.74 points to 12140.72. Shares of Magna International led decliners after JPMorgan downgraded them to "neutral" from "overweight."
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average climbed 58.54 to 10399.23. The S&P 500 increased 6.4 points to 1098.24. Hewlett-Packard led decliners on the Dow, falling more than 2 per cent after UBS AG cut its recommendation on the stock to "neutral" from "buy."
The Canadian dollar rose nearly one cent to 96.24 cents (U.S.) after the Bank of Canada raised its key overnight lending rate by 0.25 per cent to 1 per cent. The increase had been widely anticipated. The chances of another hike this year, however, appeared slim after Governor Mark Carney described borrowing conditions in Canada as "exceptionally stimulative" and the overall economic climate as fraught with "unusual uncertainty."
Oil increased by 36 cents a barrel to $74.45. Gold dipped 80 cents to $1,258.50.