The Toronto Stock Exchange is little changed at midday with most sectors higher.
The best performers are healthcare (+2.8%) and financials (+0.5%).
Limiting gains are losses in energy (-1.8%) and telecoms (-1.1%).
On the economic front, focus was on the release of Canadian retail sales data for February, and a March advance figure. CIBC said the 0.7% increase in headline sales during February missed the consensus forecast and advance estimate (0.9%), but built on a marginally upwardly revised 1.2% gain in the prior month. Core sales (ex autos and gasoline) rose by 0.6%, while overall sales volumes increased by 0.3%. On a year-over-year basis, sales volumes were up by 2.3% in February, which would represent a solid increase in per-capita terms as well given the stall in population growth seen over the past year.
The advance estimate for March pointed to a "solid-looking" 0.6% increase in overall sales, although the sharp rise in gasoline prices during the month will flatten that nominal figure, CIBC adds. Goods prices rose by more than 1% after seasonal adjustment within the March CPI figures, so the advance estimate for retail sales could represent a broadly flat move, or even a slight decline, in volume terms, the bank said.
"Overall," CIBC said, "it appears that retail sales in Q1 have posted their best quarter for growth since before US trade tensions started to negatively impact consumer sentiment. However, with higher pump prices limiting the ability of some households to make discretionary purchases, we expect consumer spending to slow again in volume terms during Q2. That slowing in spending should limit the spread of inflationary pressures to other areas of the economy, enabling the Bank of Canada to keep interest rates on hold through 2026."
Following today's release, the Desjardins Q1 GDP tracking remains broadly in line with the BoC's January MPR estimates. Desjardins continues to expect the central bank to remain on the sidelines as it waits for more clarity.
National Bank said as a result of the conflict in the Middle East, households will face an erosion in purchasing power in the coming months. This, combined with a mortgage interest-payment shock and a still fragile labour market, could weigh on discretionary spending going forward, it added.
In company news, Enbridge (ENB.TO) said Friday morning the Federal government approved its Sunrise natural gas pipeline expansion project in British Columbia.