Pump jacks pump oil at an Encana well near Standard, Alta., in May. Few predicted the sale of Encana’s Bighorn properties.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
A major deal in the energy sector helped push the Toronto stock market slightly higher late morning Tuesday.
The S&P/TSX composite index was ahead 28.24 points to 15,537.63 while investors also awaited the next big thing from Apple.
The Canadian dollar was down 0.23 of a cent to 90.9 cents (U.S.).
U.S. indexes were in the red with the Dow Jones industrials down 51.92 points to 17,059.5, the Nasdaq down 11.3 points to 4,580.98, and the S&P 500 index off 4.73 points at 1,996.81.
Investors looked to a major product unveiling later in the day from Apple. The company is expected to launch a smartwatch or bracelet equipped to monitor health, help manage homes and even buy merchandise.
Apple is likely to provide the first peek at its wearable device at an event set to begin at 1 p.m. EDT in the same Silicon Valley auditorium where Apple's late co-founder, Steve Jobs, unveiled the industry-shifting Mac computer 25 years ago. Apple shares gained $1.14 to $99.50 (U.S.).
After the markets closed Monday, Encana Corp. announced that it is selling its remaining stake in PrairieSky Royalty Ltd. in a deal valued at about $2.6-billion (Canadian). The company created PrairieSky earlier this year when it spun off a large portion of its royalty lands into the new public company that allows other companies to develop its oil and gas on its land in Alberta. Encana rose 92 cents to $25.62 while PrairieSky fell $1.59 to $36.50.
Meanwhile, the Scottish independence referendum scheduled for Sept. 18 has also grabbed market attention this week, particularly since a YouGov poll released on the weekend showed that the gap between the Yes and No sides had narrowed considerably.
A yes vote in the referendum would plunge Britain into uncharted constitutional and economic waters. There is still optimism that the no side will prevail, but analysts point to what is perceived as a larger issue of whether the U.K. will stay in the European Union.
"Common sense, I think, will prevail," said Brian Belski, chief investment strategist at BMO Capital Markets, referring to the Scottish vote.
"I think there is some concern there but in levels of concern, there is a broader concern about the EU situation and the U.K. exiting the EU."
British prime minister David Cameron has given a "cast-iron" guarantee that there will be a referendum on the European Union held in 2017 if he becomes Prime Minister.
The base metals group was the leading decliner, down one per cent as December copper fell seven cents to $3.10 (U.S.) a pound after weak Chinese import figures released Monday raised questions about domestic demand.
Copper prices have whipsawed in recent weeks, as investors weigh the possibility of lower demand from China against strong economic numbers from the U.S. Copper is widely used in manufactured goods and can be easily swayed by economic data.
The energy sector led advancers, up 0.85 per cent as the October crude contact on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 66 cents to $93.32 a barrel.
The gold sector was up 0.8 per cent as December bullion gained $1.80 to $1,256.10 an ounce.
In other corporate news, McDonald's says a key global sales figure fell 3.7 per cent in August, driven lower as the world's biggest hamburger chain's unit that includes the Asia-Pacific region dropped 14.5 per cent due to a food safety scandal in China. Its shares slipped 68 cents to $91.82.