North American stocks rose at the start of trading on Monday, after commodity prices moved higher and Canadian Tire Corp. shook up the Canadian retailing environment.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 15 points or 0.1 per cent, to 12,654. The broader S&P 500 rose 2 points or 0.1 per cent, to 1342. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index rose 61 points or 0.5 per cent, to 13,628.
Canadian Tire has offered $771-million or $26.50 a share for sporting goods retailer Forzani Group Ltd. Forzani shares surged 49.4 per cent - close to the offering price - while Canadian Tire shares rose 0.9 per cent.
Meanwhile, commodity producers were strong, after crude oil and gold rebounded following last week's dramatic selloff. Gold rose above $1,500 (U.S.) an ounce, up about $9. Crude oil rose to $99.50 a barrel, up $2.32. The gains come as Goldman Sachs analysts upgraded their view on commodities, not long after advising clients to take profits.
Suncor Energy Inc. rose 1 per cent, Barrick Gold Corp. rose 0.9 per cent, Chevron Corp. rose 0.6 per cent and DuPont rose 0.7 per cent.
However, Canada's Research In Motion Ltd. fell 1.7 per cent. As well, some key defensive U.S. stocks were weak, with Procter & Gamble down 0.4 per cent and Kraft Foods Inc. down 0.3 per cent.
David Berman