After posting its highest closing level in six weeks on Friday, the TSX is experiencing a rise and fall in trading.
On October 28, 2022, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 19,471.19, with a gain of 119.08 points, or 0.6 per cent.
In addition to it being the index’s highest closing level since September 19, it was also its sixth consecutive day of gains. The last time the Canadian stock market experienced such a long stretch of gains was in May. On Friday, it also had a weekly gain of 3.2 per cent.
But on Monday, when the nation is celebrating Halloween, the index seems to have chosen a gloomy mask as its Halloween costume. Each rise is truncated by a fall, marking a trading day of volatility.
The market, which closed at 19,471.19 on Friday, opened lower at 19,406.52. At 11.44 a.m. ET, the index had risen to 19,508.32, but by 12.44 p.m., it had dropped to 19,420.07. All through the day, the index displayed this staccato form.
At 12:00 pm, the index stood at 19,462.01, with a loss of 9.18 points, or 0.05 per cent. With that, the index had gained 2.81 per cent in five days and 3.01 per cent in one month. However, in the last three months, it had lost 1.24 per cent, while it had lost 8.36 per cent since the beginning of this year, and had lost 8.46 per cent in the last full year.
Also at noon, the health care sector led the gainers adding 4.94 per cent, followed by the energy sector with a gain of 1.99 per cent. The third sector was information technology, which gained 0.53 per cent. The sector showing the worst performance was real estate, with a drop of 0.66 per cent, followed by consumer staples with a loss of 0.56 per cent. Utilities was third, shedding 0.41 per cent.
On an individual level, the TSX’s top-three stocks were Canopy Growth stock, which gained 12.38 per cent; Tilray Inc., which gained 8.50 per cent; and Birchcliff Energy Ltd., which gained 7.54 per cent.
In the same vein, the three stocks with the lowest performance were NFI Group Inc., which lost 7.17 per cent; Interfor Corp., which lost 4.76 per cent; and Canada Goose Holdings Inc., which lost 4.56 per cent.
The news was also poor across the southern border, where the S&P 500 stood at 3,874.38, with a loss of 26.68 points, or 0.68 per cent. The Dow Jones was also down to 32,734.72, losing 127.08 points, or 0.39 per cent. The NASDAQ also told the same negative story, shedding 95.14 points, or 0.86 per cent.
The Canadian dollar lost to the American dollar, exchanging at C$1.00 to US$0.7330, with a loss of C$0.0017, or 0.2327 per cent.
The price of crude oil went down to US$87.27 per barrel, losing US$0.63, or 0.72 per cent.
Gold futures also lost value, trading at US$1,642.10 per ounce, losing US$2.70, or 0.16 per cent.
With the TSX rising again to 19,484.49.19 at 2:02 p.m., and dropping to 19,473.01 by 2:10 p.m., with a gain of 1.82 points, or 0.01 per cent, it may still end the day on a positive note.
Let us now turn to the stories that attracted our readers the most, precious metal and oil companies chief among them.
Market movers
Galantas Gold Corporation (GAL) has provided an update on its recent private placement.
NXT Energy Solutions (SFD) has disclosed its intention to embark on a rights offering.
Finally, Allied Copper (CPR) has signed an agreement to acquire 100 per cent of Volt Lithium.
Capital raises so far this week include NXT Energy Solutions and Go Metals.
