Canada Stocks-TSX hits record high as Shopify and metal miners surge
SHOP•Energy declines as oil falls
- Four of the 10 major sectors ended lower, including energy, which fell 3%. The price of oil settled 0.7% lower at $75.22 a barrel on revived expectations of a de-escalation in Iran war hostilities that could restore shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
- Suncor Energy beat second-quarter adjusted profit estimates as higher crude price realizations and stronger refining margins offset weaker upstream production. Still, its shares ended 2.9% lower.
- Thomson Reuters lifted its full-year revenue forecast, with CEO Steve Hasker saying that the company's focus was on investing and developing AI across its portfolio. Its shares were down 10.2%, pulling back from an earlier six-month high.
Shopify and materials lead gains
- "Shopify is obviously a bellwether for tech in Canada," said Allan Small, senior investment adviser of the Allan Small Financial Group with iA Private Wealth. "When these companies report good earnings ... it adds to this idea that tech companies are still doing well, that the AI spend is not stopping."
- Shopify shares jumped 16.5% to the highest level since January 19. The company issued a rosy third-quarter forecast as its AI efforts draw more merchants to a suite of e-commerce services, assuaging fears over growing competition.
- The broader technology index advanced 2.5%, while the materials group added 5.6%, marking its second straight day of sharp gains. The price of gold was up 4.2% to trade at its highest level in nearly seven weeks.
- Consumer discretionary rose 1.3% and heavily weighted financials ended 0.4% higher.
- iA Financial shares gained 2.8% after the provider of insurance products and wealth management services topped quarterly core earnings estimates.
