Canadian Stocks Rise As Liberals Take Charge -- Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks rallied Tuesday as Bay Street shrugged off the election victory by the Liberals, who beat the more business-friendly conservatives.

The new Liberal government of Justin Trudeau will need to work with businesses to maintain a stable Canadian economy.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index was up 83.54 points, or 0.62 percent to 13,841.92.

Health care stocks were hammered, losing 6 percent. Valeant (VRX.TO) remained under pressure, dropping 10 percent.

Celestica Inc. (CLS.TO) released earnings for third quarter that declined compared to the same period last year. Shares were up fractionally.

The company said its profit dropped to $31.4 million, or $0.22 per share. This was down from $47.2 million, or $0.26 per share, in last year's third quarter.

Canada's second-largest railroad operator Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (CP, CP.TO) said Tuesday that its revenue and adjusted earnings per share for the third quarter beat analysts' estimates. The results were aided by higher freight revenue and lower expenses.

Canadian Pacific also said it has ratified a multi-year collective agreement with its 450 U.S. engineers. CP shares rose 3.4 percent.

Housing starts in the U.S. rose more than expected in the month of September, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday.

The report said housing starts climbed 6.5 percent to an annual rate of 1.206 million in September from the revised August estimate of 1.132 million. Economists had expected housing starts to rise to a rate of 1.147 million.

Meanwhile, building permits tumbled 5.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.103 million in September from 1.161 million in August. Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, had been expected to come in unchanged compared to the 1.170 million originally reported for the previous month.