Energy Stocks Lead Turnaround On Bay Street After Initial Pullback

(RTTNews) - Following an initial pullback, Canadian stocks have moved mostly higher over the course of the trading session on Thursday, adding to yesterday's strong gains.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index has climbed well off its early lows and into positive territory. The index is up by 132.80 points or 0.4 percent at 33,522.53 after reaching a record intraday high.

The turnaround on the day largely reflects a rally by energy stocks, with the S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index jumping by 2.5 percent.

Energy stocks are benefitting from an extended surge by the price of crude oil, which has reached its highest levels in months amid concerns about a military conflict between the U.S. and Iran.

A modest increase by the price of price of gold is also contributing to strength in the gold sector, as reflected by the 1.2 percent gain being posted by the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index.

On the other hand, communications and healthcare stocks have moved to the downside on the day, limiting the upside for the broader markets.