Business
Positive end to Q1
Positive end to Q1
About this update from Teck Resources Limited Class A
[{"type":"text","content":"\nPositive end to Q1\n\nIndexes ignore gloomy news\n Mar. 31, 2009 (Baystreet.ca) -- 04:26 pm EST\nStock markets were up sharply in late trading Tuesday, clawing back big portions of Monday's steep declines as first-quarter trading appeared set to end on an up note.The surge came despite news of another month of economic contraction in Canada and a disappointing reading on American consumer confidence.The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 124.17 points to close the day at 8,720.39Stocks had retreated after the American and Canadian governments rejected turnaround plans by General Motors Corp. and Chrysler Corp., which raised fears one or both could be headed for bankruptcy.Since falling to multi-year lows March 9, the TSX's main index is still up about 15% while the Dow industrial average has risen about 17% However, markets are still negative at the end of the first quarter. Toronto is still under water by about 2.6% year to date while the Dow is down about 13%. Even so, the news on the economic front remains somewhat distressing. Statistics Canada said gross domestic product declined 0.7% during January, on top of a 1% drop in December and a 0.7% slide in November.The January decline matched expectations "but in what should end up being the country's darkest hour, GDP has dropped at an annualized 9% rate since October," said Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at CIBC World Markets."A few more months like that and we would be talking about a depression, but there are reasons to believe that milder monthly retreats lie ahead."Other data from Statistics Canada showed that the Industrial Product Price Index rose 0.4% in February compared with January. It attributed the modest increase to both the depreciation of the Canadian dollar against its U.S. counterpart and increases in the prices for precious metals and petroleum products.The TSX financial sector improved as Bank of Montreal improved $1.77 to $33.32 and Manulife Financial headed 48 cents higher to $14.20.The base metals sector climbed as Teck Cominco Ltd. rose 40 cents to $7.27 and First Quantum Minerals climbed $2.06 to $35.56.The TSX energy sector was up as Canadian Oil Sands Trust gained $1.81 to $24.95 and Canadian Natural Resources advanced $1.22 to $49.98.The gold sector advanced, as Barrick Gold Corp gained 55 cents to $41.43.Air Canada shares desc...