Canada’s main stock index finished higher on Friday as investors monitored developments in the Middle East and looked ahead to the June employment report for clues about the strength of the economy and the future direction of Bank of Canada interest rate decisions. During a televised business forum, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Saudi Arabia could play a key role in supporting the growth of Canada’s mining sector. He also held discussions with Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.
US markets stabilized following a strong prior session that helped both the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite secure gains for the week.
| TSX | 35,305.31 | +104.86 |  |
| TSXV | 905.98 | +7.64 | |
| CSE | 158.97 | +0.36 | |
| DJIA | 52,637.01 | +149.60 | |
| NASDAQ | 26,281.61 | +74.72 | |
| S&P 500 | 7,575.39 | +31.75 | |
The Canadian dollar traded for 70.64 cents US compared to 70.56 cents US on Thursday.
US crude futures traded $0.53 lower at US$71.55 a barrel, and the Brent contract lost $0.27 to US$76.03 a barrel.
The price of gold was down US$28.79 to US$4,103.11.
In world markets, the Nikkei was up 813.88 points to ¥68,557.73, the Hang Seng was up 144.94 points to HK$24,175.12, the FTSE was up 24.84 points to ₤10,497.29, and the DAX was down 51.18 points to €25,067.09.