Bay Street Advances as Wall Street Slips

The S&P/TSX Composite Index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) closed Wednesday (May 16) at 16,108.06 with a minor gain of 10.25 points. It boosted forward on Thursday (May 17) morning when it grew 54.58 points to reach 16,162.74.

The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (INDEXTSI:JX) took a small step forward as it picked up 0.47 points to close at 781.5 on Wednesday. It saw a minor slip on Thursday when it fell 0.85 points to hit 780.64.

Materials, which grew 0.6 percent, helped move the TSX forward on Wednesday as First Majestic Silver (TSX:FR,NYSE:AG) picked up 1.7 percent and First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FM) gained 5 percent. Drops in healthcare stocks were a small drag on the index, however, as Prometic Life Sciences (TSX:PLI) fell 5.3 percent and Aurora Cannabis (TSX:ACB) lost 4.2 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) boosted 62.52 points to close Wednesday at 24,768.93. Thursday morning saw the Dow take a tumble of 71.54 points to land at 24,697.39.

The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) grew 11.01 points on Wednesday to 2,722.46. The index slipped and fell Thursday morning as it lost 3.28 points to hit 2,719.18.

High-performing retail stocks gave Wall Street a boost on Wednesday, with Macy’s (NYSE:M) growing 10.8 percent on quarterly earnings that were stronger than expected. Nike (NYSE:NKE) kept the retail train going as the Dow’s top performer that day with a gain of 2.6 percent. Also on the rise was Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TEVA), which picked up 2.8 percent after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway bought more shares in the company.

Note: All numbers shown above were accurate as of 10:00 a.m. EST.

Daily metals

Gold slowly pushed forward on Wednesday as it closed at US$1,291.50 per ounce. It slipped back on those gains on Wednesday morning when it fell to US$1,288.10. Silver made necessary progress on Wednesday as it closed at US$16.37 per ounce. It continued to move ahead on Thursday when it rose to US$16.44.

Copper found gains by Wednesday’s close at US$3.07 per pound. It kept rising on Thursday morning as it grew to US$3.08.

Major miner news

• SEMAFO (TSX:SMF): The company has begun commissioning its Boungou mine processing plant in Burkina Faso, with plans for first ore by the end of May and first gold pour in June. As of April 30, the overall project was 97 percent complete.
• Centerra Gold (TSX:CG): AuRico Metals, Centerra Gold’s wholly owned subsidiary, is selling its royalty portfolio and all silver production from its Kemess project in BC to Triple Flag Mining Finance Bermuda for US$200 million.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Olivia Da Silva, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.