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Mar. 5, 2010 (Baystreet.ca) --
Canadian stocks moved higher in mid-morning deals Friday amid all around buying.
The S&P/TSX composite index continued its pursuit of the psychologically-important 12,000 mark, greeting noon ahead 131.23 points, or 1.1% to 11,956.20
Encouraging jobs data from the U.S. and firm metal prices helped lift sentiment.
Base metal stocks were in limelight, with Inmet Mining was up 3.09% and First Quantum Minerals rose 3.53%.
The Gold Index moved up, as Eldorado Gold rose 2.47% and Iamgold gained 2.05%.
Barrick Gold gathered 1.56% on reports the company will raise as much as $978 million by offering shares of its African unit through an initial public offering in London.
Precious metals explorer NovaGold Resources edged up 1.75% after announcing plans to issue 18.18 million common shares at $5.50 per share for gross proceeds of $100 million.
Silver explorer Silver Standard Resources was higher by 4.23% after reporting a narrower fourth-quarter net loss of $0.13 per share, compared to a loss of $0.23 per share in the previous-year quarter.
Among energy stocks, Canadian Natural Resources rose 2.74%. Yesterday, the company said its fourth-quarter net earnings dipped to $0.85 per share from $3.27 per share in the previous year but upped its dividend payout by over 40% to $0.15 a share.
Also, it said it will subdivide its common shares on a two-for-one basis after necessary approvals.
West Energy rallied 19% to $5.030 on news that that it will be acquired by Daylight Resources Trust for $570 million. Shareholders of West Energy will receive $5.50 per share or 0.465 of a Daylight trust unit. On the other hand, Daylight slipped 1.65%.
Natural gas explorer Celtic Exploration moved up 4.20%. The company today said its fourth-quarter net earnings plunged to $0.02 per share, from $0.72 per share in the year-ago quarter.
Renewable energy generator Algonquin Power & Utilities edged up 1.19% on reporting a fourth-quarter net loss of $0.03 per share, compared to a loss of $0.28 per share in the same period last year.
Construction contractor Seacliff Construction gathered 7.48% after announcing improved net earnings in its fourth quarter to $0.49 per share from $0.18 per share in the previous-year quarter.
Food products maker Sun-Rype Products edged up 1.02% after it swung to profit in the fourth quarter, reporting a net income of $0.08 per share compared to a loss of $0.15 per share in the year-ago quarter.
Restaurants operator Tim Hortons gained 3.07% on announcing plans to open as much as new coffee shops in Canada. For fiscal 2010, the company expects earnings to be in the range of $1.95-2.05 per share.
Silver Wheaton rose 4.05% after reporting net earnings of $0.15 per share for the fourth quarter, compared to a net loss of $0.22 per share in the prior-year quarter.
Infrastructure development company SNC-Lavalin Group added 2.61% on posting fourth-quarter net income of $0.65 per share, compared to $0.49 per share in the last-year quarter and upped its dividend payout by 13% to $0.17 a share.
Real estate investment trust Chartwell Seniors Housing Real Estate Investment Trust slipped 1.60%. The company said its fourth-quarter net loss narrowed to $0.06 per share from a loss of $0.81 per share in the same period last year.
Oil and gas industry service provider Trican Well Service eased 0.88% even after it swung to profit in fourth-quarter reporting net income of $0.12 per share, compared to a loss of $0.77 per share in the prior-year quarter.
Yesterday, in its budget statement, the Canadian government said it forecasts a $49.2-billion deficit in 2010-11, up from the $45.3 billion predicted earlier and noted that it would be in surplus by 2015-16.
The Canadian dollar jumped 0.33 cents to 97.26 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
All 14 TSX subgroups were positive by noon Friday. Metals and mining vaulted 3%, followed by global base metals, up 2.5% and materials, gaining 1.9%.
The TSX Venture Exchange prospered 10.05 points to 1,551.89, while the Nasdaq Canada index gained 5.77 points to 762.38.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks gained Friday after a government report showed employers cut fewer positions than had been expected, adding to bets that the pace of job losses is slowing.
The Dow Jones industrial average moved up 85.63 points at midday to 10,529.77. The S&P 500 index leaped 11.07 points to 1,134.04, and the Nasdaq composite improved 25.09 points to 2,317.40.
Stocks ended a choppy session higher Thursday as investors welcomed improved retail sales, but showed caution ahead of Friday's report.
Among early stock movers, Apple shares surged after the company said it would release its much-anticipated iPad tabled computer April 3.
The Labor Department announced that the economy lost 36,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.7%.
A consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected the report to show the economy lost 63,000 jobs last month and for the unemployment rate to tick higher to 9.8%.
On Thursday, the House amended a $15-billion U.S. Senate bill before passing it, once again delaying efforts to pass legislation to spur job creation. The amendments mean the Senate must again approve the bill if President Obama is to sign it into law. The Senate won't take up the legislation again until next week.
Treasury prices dipped sharply, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.68% from Thursday's 3.60%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The price of a barrel of oil gained $1.46 to $81.67 U.S.
Gold prices gained six dollars to $1,139 U.S.