TSX Ends Higher On Energy Stocks, Mixed Data - Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks ended higher Friday, led by the energy sector as crude oil prices strengthened over developments in troubled Egypt, raising fears of supply disruption from the Middle East as violence continued unabated. Investors also continued to weigh possibilities of the U.S. Federal Reserve scaling down its quantitative easing program in the near future.

Egypt continued to remain in focus as violence escalated with supporters of deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi determined to take on security forces. Although not a major oil producer, the situation in Egypt has caused great anxiety, fueling fears of supply disruption through the Suez Canal that skirts the troubled country, and which is the major shipping route from the Middle-East.

On a positive note, non-farm productivity for the second quarter improved better than expected, a preliminary report from the U.S. Labor Department showed.

Meanwhile, a preliminary report from Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan showed the U.S. consumer index to have dropped from a six-month high in July. New home construction in the U.S. was up sharply in July, but still fell short of projections made by economists. New building permits also improved in July, but came in short of economists' expectations.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed Friday at 12,736.92, up 32.40 points or 0.26 percent. The index touched an intraday high of 12,799.99 and a low of 12,704.51.

The Information Technology Index shed 0.42 percent, with BlackBerry Limited (BB.TO) sliding 3.89 percent.

The Capped Materials Index dropped 1.04 percent, with Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc.(POT.TO) shedding 2.39 percent and Agrium Inc. (AGU.TO) shed 0.89 percent.

The Global Gold Index gained 0.12 percent, with gold futures for December delivery adding $10.10 or 0.7 percent to close at $1,371.00 an ounce Friday on the Nymex.

Among gold stocks, Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX.TO) dropped 2.06 percent, while Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI.TO) lost 1.69 percent. Kinross Gold Corp. (K.TO) shed 1.92 percent, while Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) slipped 0.43 percent. IAMGOLD Corp. (IMG.TO) surrendered 1.95 percent.

The Diversified Metals & Mining Index gained 0.34 percent, with First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM.TO) down 0.26 percent. Osisko Mining Corp. (OSK.TO) gained 0.39 percent, Teck Resources Limited (TCK.B.TO) shed 1.24 percent, and Lundin Mining Corp. (LUN.TO) added 2.88 percent.

The Energy Index gained 0.85 percent, with U.S. crude oil futures for September delivery gaining $0.13 or 0.1 percent to close at $107.46 a barrel Friday on the Nymex.

Among energy stocks, Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO) gained 2.05 percent, while Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM.TO) added 1.89 percent. Encana Corp. (ECA.TO) shed 0.11 percent, while Suncor Energy Inc.(SU.TO) added 1.03 percent.

The Financial Index gained 0.57 percent with Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) up 0.53 percent, Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) up 0.78 percent, and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) gaining 0.76 percent. Manulife Financial Corp. (MFC.TO) dropped 0.23 percent.

The Capped Industrials Index gained 0.74 percent, with Bombardier Inc. (BBD.A.TO, BBD.B.TO) up 1.04 percent.

In economic news Statistics Canada said non-resident investors trimmed their holdings of Canadian securities by $15.4 billion in June, the largest reduction since October 2007, with Canadian bonds in focus. Meanwhile, Canadian investors resumed their acquisition of foreign securities by adding $3.7 billion to their portfolios in June, favoring US debt instruments and non-US foreign equities.

Separately, the agency said manufacturing sales declined 0.5 percent to $48.2 billion in June to record its fourth decrease in six months.

In economic news from the U.S., the Commerce Department said housing starts increased 5.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 896,000 units. June's starts were revised up to show a 846,000-unit pace instead of the previously reported 836,000 units. Economists expected housing starts to rise to a 900,000-unit rate last month. Meanwhile, building permits rose 2.7 percent in July to a 943,000-unit pace, almost matching economists expectations for a rise to a 945,000 units.

U.S. employees were more productive and worked longer hours in the second quarter, a Labor Department report showed Friday. Productivity rose at a 0.9 percent annual rate in the second quarter, beating expectations for a modest 0.7 percent increase. This follows revised 1.7 percent declines in both the first quarter of 2013 and the last quarter of 2012. Output was up 2.6 percent amid a 1.7 percent rise in hours worked. Labor costs increased 1.4 percent in the second quarter of 2013, due in part to a 2.3 percent increase in hourly pay. Manufacturing sector productivity rose 2.7 percent.

Consumer confidence in the U.S. in fell unexpectedly in August from a six-year high, a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan report showed. A preliminary reading showed the consumer sentiment index to have dropped to 80 from 85.1 in July. The July reading was the highest since 2007. Economists expected the index at a reading of 85.5.

Elsewhere, the eurozone current account surplus declined in June mainly due to a fall in visible trade surplus, monthly data from the European Central Bank showed. The current account surplus decreased to a seasonally adjusted EUR 16.9 billion from EUR 19.5 billion in May.

Meanwhile, final data from Eurostat revealed eurozone's annual inflation to have stayed unchanged in July as estimated earlier. The harmonized index of consumer prices increased 1.6 percent on an annual basis in July, which was unchanged from the growth recorded in June. The outcome also matched the preliminary estimates.

In a separate report, the Eurostat said eurozone exports expanded in June after falling for two consecutive months. Exports advanced 3 percent in June from May, when it decreased by 2.6 percent. Likewise, imports rose 2.5 percent, offsetting the 2.1 percent fall in May.