Business
TSX surges
TSX surges
About this update from Hudbay Minerals Inc
[{"type":"text","content":"\nTSX surges\n\nMetals, materials lead way\n Feb. 11, 2010 (Baystreet.ca) -- The Toronto stock market moved higher Thursday as a commitment from the European Union to help Greece deal with its huge debt problem eased fears of a default.\n\nThe S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the day up 149.16 points, or 1.3%, to 11, 435.49. \n\nThe TSX financial sector shed most losses from early nervousness about Greece's debt issue and was down slightly at mid-afternoon. However, shares in three of Canada's big life insurance companies lost ground following disappointing earnings results.\n\nSun Life Financial shares fell $1.10 to $30.26 after it said on Thursday that quarterly profit more than doubled to $296 million or 52 cents a share in the last quarter of 2009. However, that's less than the 65 cents a share that analysts expected.\n\nManulife Financial Corp. says it had a profit of $868 million in the fourth quarter, the equivalent of 51 cents per common share. That's an improvement from a year-earlier loss of $1.87-billion, or $1.24 per share and its shares moved down 52 cents to $18.98.\n\nAnd Great-West Lifeco Inc., the third of Canada's three biggest insurance company's to report Thursday, saw it shares gain a dime to $26.60 after the company reported profit of $443 million, or 47 cents per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31. That's down from $525 million, or 59 cents per share, in the same period of 2008.\n\nElsewhere in the sector, TD Bank rose 69 cents to $65.12.\n\nThe base metals sector surged forward as the March copper contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was ahead 15 cents to $3.14 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources ran ahead $1.96 to $37.50 while HudBay Minerals rose $1.08 to $13.53.\n\nThe gold sector was up, as Barrick Gold Corp. gained 90 cents to $38.80.\n\nThe TSX energy sector was ahead, as Canadian Natural Resources climbed $1.19 to $70.29.\n\nCanada's largest natural gas producer, EnCana Corp. saw its fourth-quarter profit fall 41% as lower natural gas prices took a bite out of its top line. EnCana, which split off its oil division last year as Cenovus earned a fourth-quarter profit of $636 million, compared to $1.08 billion in the same period a year ago.\n\nStripping out the impact of the oil assets that were spun off into Cenovus, EnCana said operating earnings fell to 50 cents per share from 73 cents. Its shares ...