Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange August 2, 2012.BRENDAN MCDERMID/Reuters
The Toronto stock market moved higher shortly after the open as commodity prices gained traction and a U.S. jobs report beat expectations.
The S&P/TSX composite index lifted 138.16 points to 11,644.66.
The July labour report came in higher than expected, with total U.S. nonfarm payrolls up by 163,000, better than the 100,000 gain that was projected. The unemployment rate rose to 8.3 per cent, up 0.1 per cent.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average increased 167.37 points to 13,046.25 and the broader S&P was up 18.55 points to 1,383.55. Nasdaq gained 37.60 points at 2,947.37.
In commodities, the September crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange lifted $2.58 to $89.71 (U.S.) a barrel. August gold rose $5.90 to $1,596.60 an ounce.
The Canadian dollar rose 0.68 of a cent to 99.97 cents (U.S.) after briefly touching parity earlier in the morning.