Canadian stock market rebounds on miners, industrials gains

Canada's main stock market in Toronto Friday rebounded with a three-digit increase, as gains in the mining and industrial shares helped recover almost all the previous session's losses.

Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index increased 115.25 points, or 0.76 percent, to 15,339.77 points.

All the sectors but utilities were in the positive territory. Canadian Utilities Limited plunged 3.44 percent to 37.85 Canadian dollars (about 31.14 U.S. dollars).

Metals and mining soared 4.08 percent, leading the gainers as metals giants rallied on the rising copper prices.

Teck Resources Ltd. jumped 3.44 percent to 18.92 Canadian dollars and First Quantum Minerals Ltd. soared 5.63 percent to 19. 52 Canadian dollars per share.

Industrials were up 1.68 percent when Canadian Pacific Railway Limited jumped 2.65 percent to 236.13 Canadian dollars apiece after the transcontinental railway maker said on Friday that Canada and the U.S. were working to develop a harmonized set of standards for tank cars carrying crude oil and other hazardous goods.

Canadian National Railway Company, another influential gainer in the sector, rose 2.81 percent to 80.09 Canadian dollars per share.

Energy added 0.08 percent although oil prices pulled back from 2015 highs on Friday. Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. grew 0.53 percent to 13.18 Canadian dollars.

Crude prices are 35 percent higher from the mid-March lows, according to a weekly financial report released by Bank of Montreal on Friday. With oil prices rebounding from lows, analysts believed that concerns over the era of "$40 oil" have been tempered to some extent, which also lifted the Canadian dollar.

"The bigger picture is still in place -- bad for Alberta and other oil producers, good for central Canada and consumers -- but it's a little more nuanced now," the bank said.

On the economic front, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) said in a report Friday that April was another difficult month for Canadian manufacturing companies, with output, new business and employment levels all decreasing during the month.

"The Canadian manufacturing sector continued to exhibit weakness in the month of April with deteriorating business conditions and weak new business inflows," said Craig Wright, RBC' s senior vice-president and chief economist.

On the currency front, the Canadian dollar Friday dropped to 0. 8226 U.S. dollar from 0.8289 U.S. dollar of the previous session.