Canada’s main stock index rose to a record high on Wednesday, led by metal miners and food retailer Loblaw, as the recent strength of corporate earnings bolstered investor sentiment. The Dow also notched a record high, closing above 48,000 for the first time, as investors rotated out of pricey technology stocks while focusing on a likely end to the historic U.S. government shutdown.
The S&P/TSX composite index ended up 418.33 points, or 1.4%, at 30,827.58, eclipsing the previous record closing high it posted on October 15.
“There certainly seems to have been a key change in sentiment ... for the better, and when you combine that with seasonal strength that has helped the TSX to power on to new highs,” said Elvis Picardo, a portfolio manager at Luft Financial, iA Private Wealth.
The Canadian index has rebounded 4.4% since hitting a seven-week intraday low on Friday.
“Q3 earnings have been pretty robust, and that earnings strength is predicted to continue to next year,” Picardo said. “The jobs numbers that came out on Friday, they lent some credence to the view that the worst is over for the Canadian economy.” Canada’s economy added far more jobs than expected for a second straight month in October, and the unemployment rate fell to 6.9% from 7.1%.
The materials group, which includes metal mining shares, rose 3.4% on Wednesday as gold prices climbed. Gold was up 1.7% as U.S. Treasury yields slipped ahead of a House of Representatives vote to reopen the U.S. government.
Shares of Loblaw Companies advanced 3.7% as the retailer beat third-quarter profit estimates and raised its annual profit forecast. The consumer staples sector overall was up 2.5%.
Heavily weighted financials ended 1.5% higher.
All 10 major sectors notched gains, including energy. It ended up 0.1% even as the price of oil settled 4.2% lower at US$58.49 a barrel, weighed down by an OPEC report saying global oil supply will match demand in 2026, marking a further shift from its earlier projections of a supply deficit.
Baytex Energy shares jumped 13.6% after the company announced a deal to sell its U.S. Eagle Ford assets to an undisclosed buyer for $2.3 billion.
On Wall Street, gains of about 3.5% each in Goldman Sachs and UnitedHealth Group lifted the Dow to a record-high close for a second straight day. The index is up about 13% in 2025, lagging a nearly 17% rise in the S&P 500.
Some of Wall Street’s tech-related heavyweights lost ground. Tesla fell 2.1%, Palantir lost 3.6% and Oracle declined 3.9%. AMD rallied 9% after the chip designer unveiled a US$100 billion data-center revenue target.
“We have seen somewhat of a rotation away from Nasdaq-heavy leadership toward other areas of the market doing pretty well, like health care and financials,” said Matt Stucky, chief equity portfolio manager at Northwestern Mutual. “A critical component for seeing markets broaden out is having earnings broaden out as well.”
SoftBank Group’s US$5.8 billion sale of its Nvidia stake jolted stock markets on Tuesday, stoking fears that the frenzy around artificial intelligence may have peaked, especially after recent warnings from Wall Street bank chiefs and a famed short seller. Nvidia’s quarterly report next Wednesday will be a key test of investor sentiment around AI.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.06% to end the session at 6,850.92 points. The Nasdaq declined 0.26% to 23,406.46 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.68% to 48,254.82 points.
Six of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by healthcare , up 1.36%, followed by a 0.9% gain in financials .
The government shutdown has weighed on the economy and created a data gap for both the Federal Reserve and traders, leaving them reliant on private economic indicators.
Tuesday’s weekly update of ADP’s preliminary payroll figures showed private employers shedding an average of 11,250 jobs a week for the four weeks ended October 25, pointing to continued weakness in the labor market.
Traders are pricing in a 65% probability of a quarter-point reduction at December’s monetary policy meeting, CME Group’s FedWatch tool showed.
Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic on Wednesday said he would retire when his term ends in February, amid concerns of a push by Trump for more influence over the Fed.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was light, with 17.2 billion shares traded, compared to an average of 20.5 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions.
Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&P 500 by a 1.5-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 posted 36 new highs and two new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 102 new highs and 103 new lows.
Reuters, Globe staff