TSX Ends On Strong Note

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market closed on a firm note on Friday, led by gains in technology and healthcare stocks.

Firm crude oil prices and the positive mood on Wall Street after data showed a surprisingly bigger than expected increase in addition of jobs in the month of January lifted sentiment.

Data from Statistics Canada showed a bigger than expected decline in jobs in the month of January, but investors largely shrugged off the data and picked up stocks.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the session with a gain of 177.84 points or 0.84% at 21,271.85. The index gained about 2.6% in the week, the biggest weekly climb in eleven months.

The Capped Healthcare Index climbed nearly 3%. Aurora Cannabis (ACB.TO) and Tilray Inc (TLRY.TO) surged up 7.2% and 6.15%, respectively. Cronos Group (CRON.TO) gained 5.4%, Canopy Growth Corp (WEED.TO) gained 4.3% and Sienna Senior Living (SIA.TO) moved up nearly 3%, while Well Health Technologies (WELL.TO) closed stronger by 1.5%.

The Capped Information Technology Index moved up 2.7%. Hut 8 Mining Corp (HUT.TO), up 13%, was the biggest gainer. Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) rallied nearly 9%, Converge Technology Solutions (CTS.TO) moved up 6.4%, Tecsys Inc (TCS.TO) gained 4.8% and Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO) ended stronger by more than 3.5%.

Data released by Statistics Canada showed the Canadian economy shed 200,100 jobs in January of 2022, following an upwardly revised 78,600 gain in December 2021. It was the first decline in employment since May of 2021.

Full time employment in the country decreased by 82,700 in January, while part-time employment decreased by 117,400 in the month.

The unemployment rate in Canada rose to 6.5% in January from an upwardly revised 6% in the previous month.

Average hourly earnings in Canada increased to C$ 31.22 in December 2021 over the previous month.

A report from Richard Ivey School of Business said the Ivey Purchasing Managers Index in Canada rebounded to 50.7 in January 2022 from 45 in the previous month.