U.S. stocks moved slightly higher on Tuesday, lifted by some upbeat corporate earnings and a deal in Europe to bail out Greece – but Canada’s benchmark index was the real star, thanks to surging commodity prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 12,965.69, up 15.82 points or 0.1 per cent -- after rising above 13,000 earlier in the day for the first time since May, 2008. The broader S&P 500 closed at 1362.21, up 0.98 point or less than 0.1 per cent. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 12,623.36, up 165.06 points or 1.3 per cent.
The moves followed all-night negotiations in Europe that yielded an agreement to forward €130-billion in bailout funds to Greece, saving the country from the threat of a messy default, at least for now. Although the agreement comes as some relief, you wouldn’t know it from the stock market’s reaction: In Europe, major indexes slumped, with Germany’s DAX index down 0.6 per cent.
Commodity producers showed some of the biggest moves, after the price of crude oil rose to $106.25 (U.S.) a barrel, up $2.65 – a gain that followed Iran’s decision to halt exports to the U.K. and France. Suncor Energy Inc. rose 1.8 per cent and Chevron Corp. rose 1.6 per cent.
Gold producers were even stronger, though, after the price of gold rose to $1,758.50 an ounce, up $32.60. Barrick Gold Corp. rose 3 per cent and Goldcorp Inc. rose 2.9 per cent.
In other moves, Home Depot Inc. rose 0.5 per cent and Kraft Foods Inc. rose 1.5 per cent after their respective quarterly results topped expectations. However, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. fell 3.9 per cent after the retailer missed expectations.
