Yahoo Finance CANADA STOCKS-TSX hits highest in a month led by communication stocks
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TSX up 0.5%
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Communication services sector leads gains
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Linamar Corp beats profit estimates; shares rise
(Updated at 9:52 a.m. ET/ 1352 GMT)
By Purvi Agarwal
May 9 (Reuters) - Canada's main index jumped to its highest level in a month on Thursday, thanks to gains in communication stocks, while investors parsed through corporate earnings in the United States and Canada.
At 9:52 a.m. ET (1352 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was up 103.58 points, or 0.47%, at 22,362.74.
Eight of the eleven sectors gained, putting the index on track to recover from its loss posted in the previous session.
"We're seeing a lot of skewness, for the performance of individual companies, acting into their earnings announcements, rather than broad momentum-based performance," said Kevin Headland, co-chief investment strategist at Manulife Investment Management.
The communication services sector, up 1.5%, led the gains on the index, powered by a 4.1% rise in Quebecor after the company beat first-quarter profit estimates.
Materials stocks rose 0.9%, boosted by miners such as Wedsome Gold and Pan American Silver, which gained more than 6% each tracking higher prices of precious metals.
Meanwhile, the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased more than expected last week as the labour market steadily eases, data showed on Thursday.
The data follows Friday's crucial employment report that showed slowing U.S. jobs growth in April, which added to bets that the Federal Reserve will start its easing cycle in September.
"The market is looking for signs that inflation is cooling along the trend the Fed is expecting. It is not just one or even couple of data points but a holistic picture," Headland said.
Wall Street indexes, however, were muted at open after downbeat earnings offset the impact of the data.
In Canadian corporate news, Manulife Financial gained 3.0% after the insurer reported better-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday.
Auto parts manufacturer Linamar jumped 10.0% after its first-quarter sales beat analysts' expectations. (Reporting by Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Ravi Prakash Kumar and Shilpi Majumdar)
