Materials sector boosts S&P/TSX composite, U.S. stock markets edge higher

TORONTO — The mining-heavy materials sector led Canada’s main stock index higher in early trading as the price of gold also moved up.

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 141.13 points at 16,655.74.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 11.41 points at 27,942.43. The S&P 500 index was up 11.96 points at 3,384.81, while the Nasdaq composite was up 67.07 points at 11,086.37.

The Canadian dollar traded for 75.67 cents US compared with 75.47 cents US on Friday.

The September crude contract was down 10 cents at US$41.91 per barrel and the September natural gas contract was down a penny at US$2.34 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$22.00 at US$1,971.80 an ounce and the September copper contract was up nearly four cents at US$2.89 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2020.

Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD=X)

The Canadian Press