TSX up on strong bank results, Dow sets record
The Toronto stock market was higher Wednesday on strong corporate earnings as New York's Dow index hit a new record.
The Canadian dollar also rose, climbing 0.39 of a cent to 80.45 cents US on a bounce in oil prices.
The TSX S&P index was up 65 points to 15,230 after Royal Bank turned in a record profit for the first quarter of 2015. National Banks earnings also came in higher than expected.
The market also liked an announcement by HBC, which said it will join with Toronto-based RioCan and Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group to create two real estate joint ventures.
Oil rebounds
Crude oil futures rose on Wednesday after Saudi Arabia's oil minister said oil demand was growing and the U.S. Energy Information Administration forecast gasoline sales would rise by one per cent this year.
Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi remarked on the decreased volatility in oil prices in the past week and said he believed data showed Chinese factories were producing more than expected.
The West Texas Intermediate contract rose $1.75 to $51.03 US a barrel in trading in New York Wednesday. Brent crude, the international contract, was up $2.96 to $61.62 US a barrel.
After hitting record highs on Tuesday, all the New York indexes registered slight gains in the morning. By the close, the Dow was up 15 points to 18,224. However, the S&P edged down 1.79 to 2113 and the Nasdaq eased 0.98 of point to to 4,967.
