TSX Up Marginally In Cautious Trade
(RTTNews) - The Canadian market is turning in a mixed performance on Thursday, with investors largely making cautious moves ahead of a long weekend.
Investors are digesting Canadian employment data for the month of March.
Healthcare, utilities and consumer staples shares are among the notable gainers, while shares from rest of the sectors are mixed.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index is up 32.05 points or 0.16% at 10,191.60 at quarter past noon.
Tilray Inc (TLRY.TO) is gaining nearly 4%. Utilities stocks Brookfield Renewable Partners (BEP.UN.TO), Boralex (BLX.TO), Brookfield Infra Partners (BIP.UN.TO), Northland Power (NPI.TO) and Algonquin Power and Utilities (AQN.TO) are up 1 to 2%.
The North West Company Inc (NWC.TO), up 5.6%, is the top gainer in the Consumer Staples Index. Maple Leaf Foods (MFI.TO) is rising 2.3%, while Empire Company (EMP.A.TO) is up 1.6%.
Data released by Statistics Canada this morning showed the Canadian economy added 35,000 jobs in March 2023, much higher than the expected addition.
The unemployment rate in Canada was at 5% for the fourth consecutive month in March, remaining close to the record low of 4.9% seen in June and July 2022.
Meanwhile, average weekly earnings for permanent employees in Canada increased by 5.2% from a year earlier, after a 5.4% rise in the prior month.
A report from Richard Ivey School of Business said the Ivey Purchasing Managers Index in Canada jumped to 58.2 in March 2023, from 51.6 in February, beating market forecasts of 56.1.
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