Canadian markets finished the week on a positive note, supported by softer oil prices and slight gains in precious metals. Still, higher bond yields tempered investor enthusiasm. Crude benchmarks Brent and WTI each fell more than 1.5% as optimism grew that talks between Iran and US negotiators could produce a meaningful breakthrough in the prolonged conflict. The TSX finished the week in a better position than where it was on Monday.
South of the border, US equities moved higher ahead of the week’s close despite continued volatility. Treasury yields remained a key focus for investors after climbing on the back of hawkish commentary from Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr, resilient economic data, and elevated energy costs linked to the Iran war. Nevertheless, the Dow posted its fourth consecutive weekly loss.
| TSX | 35,800.89 | _94.43 |  |
| TSXV | 920.47 | +6.56 | |
| CSE | 170.62 | -0.03 |  |
| DJIA | 51,828.62 | +478.64 | |
| NASDAQ | 27,068.72 | +129.34 | |
| S&P 500 | 7,743.41 | +39.28 | |
The Canadian dollar traded for 70.69 cents US compared to 70.70 cents US on Thursday.
US crude futures traded US$2.40 lower at US$92.21 a barrel, and the Brent contract lost US$2.49 to US$104.10 a barrel.
The price of gold was up US$21.05 to US$4,283.74.
In world markets, the Nikkei was up 850.21 points to ¥66,364.20, the Hang Seng was down 251.04 points to HK$24,510.09, the FTSE was up 15.26 points to ₤10,695.25, and the DAX was up 142.11 points to €25,408.64.