Chairman of euro zone finance ministers Jean-Claude JunckerVirginia Mayo
North American stocks jumped at the start of trading on Monday morning, shaking off last week's stock market setback as investors embraced Germany's support of boosting the size of the euro zone's financial firewall.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 105 points or 0.8 per cent, to 13,188. The broader S&P 500 rose 12 points or 0.9 per cent, to 1,409. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index rose 66 points or 0.5 per cent, to 12,531.
The gains came despite Spain showing increasing strains in dealing with its financial deficit, and Italy warning that the country could be central to the next chapter in the euro zone's sovereign-debt crisis. At the same time, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke warned on Monday that the U.S. employment situation is far from normal – with more payrolls gains dependent upon fasting economic growth.
The stock market gains were broad, though, lifting 29 stocks within the 30-member Dow Jones industrial average. Pfizer Inc. rose 1.3 per cent, Boeing Co. and Exxon Mobil Corp. rose 1.2 per cent each, and Microsoft Corp. and Bank of America Corp. rose 1 per cent each.
In Canada, Manulife Financial Corp. rose 1.6 per cent and Royal Bank of Canada rose 0.7 per cent. Among commodity producers, Suncor Energy Inc. rose 0.7 per cent and Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. rose 0.2 per cent, but Barrick Gold Corp. fell 0.2 per cent.
SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. fell 2 per cent after its chief executive resigned amid allegations he allowed improper payments.
David Berman