The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed sharply higher on Thursday as steep gains in technology stocks outweighed weakness in energy, while investors assessed weaker-than-expected Canadian trade data ahead of Friday's employment report.
The index closed up 541.51 points, or 1.5%, at 36,633.12. Information Technology led advancers, up 3.7%, followed by the telecom and industrial sectors that closed up 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively. Energy and base metals fell 0.8% and 0.1%, respectively.
The Battery Metals Index, which includes companies listed both on the TSX and TSX Venture Exchange, jumped 1.8%.
In commodities, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude edged higher as markets weighed renewed US-Iran tensions and risks to Middle East oil supplies.
October WTI crude oil contract settled up $0.29, or 0.3%, at $91.30 per barrel, while November Brent oil was last seen up $0.17, or 0.2%, at $95.80 per barrel.
Meanwhile, December Comex gold futures jumped 2.5%, or $110.70, to $4,525.30 per ounce at last look.
In currencies, the US dollar edged lower 0.4% against the Canadian dollar to CA$1.3785 at last look.
Separately, in the bond market, Canada's two-year bond auction received CA$14.4 billion in bids for CA$5.5 billion of securities, with the bonds awarded at an average yield of 3.164%, according to data published on the Bank of Canada's website on Thursday.
In grains movement, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP.TO, CP) said it moved a record 2.54 million metric tonnes (MMT) and 26,051 carloads of Canadian grain and grain products in August. Canadian National Railway Company (CNR.TO, CNI) moved 2.50 MMT of grain from Western Canada in August, beating the previous record of 2.34 MMT set in August 2020.
In economics news, Canada's merchandise trade surplus narrowed sharply to CA$769 million in July from CA$4.2 billion in June, as exports declined 2.3% on the month and imports rose 2.2% monthly, according to Statistics Canada.
July's surplus was much lower than a CA$3.18 billion consensus surplus expected in a Bloomberg survey.
Canada's trade surplus with the US narrowed to CA$5.9 billion in July from CA$10.3 billion as exports fell 6.6%, marking the largest monthly decline since April 2025. Imports from the US rose 1.8% on the month, led by passenger cars and light trucks, added StatsCan.
Looking ahead, Canadian employment growth is expected to slow to 12,000 in August, from a strong 75,000 gain in July, according to UBS Global Research ahead of Friday's Labour Force Survey for that month.