The Canadian stock market is experiencing a robust upswing in early afternoon trading on Friday, as equities from various sectors rally on the back of favorable employment data and a report indicating a moderate decrease in the growth rate of U.S. producer prices.
Statistics Canada released figures showing a notable increase in employment, with 46,700 jobs added in September—marking the most substantial gain in five months. This figure surpasses the market's expectation of a 27,000 net increase. The surge was predominantly driven by a 112,000 rise in full-time positions, signaling a strong labor market and alleviating concerns of potential softening.
Canada's unemployment rate slightly decreased to 6.5% in September, compared to the previous month's 34-month high of 6.6%.
In September, average hourly earnings in Canada rose to C$36.54. However, data also revealed a 7% month-over-month decline in the total value of building permits, dropping to $11.5 billion in August 2024—this follows a significant upward revision of 20.8% in July and exceeds the anticipated 5.5% decrease.
On the U.S. front, the Labor Department reported a slowdown in the annual growth rate of producer prices, down to 1.8% in September from an adjusted figure of 1.9% in August. This contrasts with economists' expectations of a decrease to 1.6% from the originally reported 1.7%.
Key stock gains are observed in the technology, consumer discretionary, industrials, real estate, materials, and financial sectors, while energy stocks are observing subdued activity.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index, having earlier reached a record high of 24,518.55, shows an increase of 184.94 points or 0.76%, reaching 24,487.20 shortly after noon.
In the Information Technology Capped Index, Celestica Inc (CLS.TO) leads with a near 4% increase, contributing to the index's 1.5% rise. Notable performers include Converge Technology Solutions (CTS.TO), Bitfarms (BITF.TO), and Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO), with gains ranging between 1.3% and 3%.
In the consumer discretionary sector, Dollarama (DOL.TO) and Gildan Activewear (GIL.TO) rise by 2.5% and 1.7%, respectively. Additional gains come from Magna International (MG.TO) and BRP Inc (DOO.TO), with each gaining between 1.3% and 1.5%.
Real estate stocks such as Colliers International (CIGI.TO), Altus Group (AIF.TO), and FirstService Corp (FSV.TO) increase by 1.3% to 2%.
Major advancements in the industrial sector include TFI International (TFII.TO) up 4%, and NFI Group (NFI.TO) up by 3%, among others.
Financial stocks, including goeasy (GSY.TO) and Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO), see gains ranging from 1.5% to 3%.
Materials companies like First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) and B2Gold Corp (BTO.TO), enjoy increases from 2% to 4%.
Conversely, MTY Food Group Inc. (MTY.TO) declined by 2.3% following the announcement of its third-quarter net income drop to $34.9 million ($1.46 per diluted share), compared to $38.9 million ($1.59 per diluted share) from the previous year. Aritzia Inc (ATZ.TO) experienced an over 6% decline despite reporting a 404.6% increase in net income to $18.2 million (3.0% of net revenue) for Q2 2024.