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Markets higher on positive economic data
 
 
September 29, 2009 

 
The Toronto Stock Exchange�s benchmark index, the S&P/TSX composite, 
was up 35.69 points, or by 0.31 per cent, to 11,374.41 points in early 
trading.
 
The Toronto Stock Exchange�s benchmark index, the S&P/TSX composite, 
was up 35.69 points, or by 0.31 per cent, to 11,374.41 points in early 
trading.
Photograph by: CNS, Canwest News Service

Markets opened higher Tuesday, as data continued to show improving 
economic conditions, in U.S. housing markets and in Canadian consumer 
confidence.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark index, the S&P/TSX composite, 
was up 35.69 points, or by 0.31 per cent, to 11,374.41 points in early 
trading.

The price of oil fell to $66.37 U.S. a barrel on weak demand, following 
Monday's close of $66.84 U.S. a barrel. Inventory figures from the 
American Petroleum Institute due later Tuesday and from the U.S. 
Department of Energy Wednesday are expected to be weak.

Gold fell to $991.70 U.S. an ounce after its previous close of $994.10 
U.S..

The Canadian dollar was trading around 91.71 cents U.S., down from 
Monday's close of 91.95 cents U.S..

Canadian consumer confidence jumped to 90.9 in September � the highest 
level since April 2008 � according to the Conference Board of Canada. 
The figure is up for the seventh-straight month and compares to its 
late-2008 low when the index plunged to just 67.7.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was up 19.5 points, or 
0.21 per cent, to 9,808.86 and the Nasdaq composite index rose 3.37 
points, or 0.16 per cent, to 2,134.24.

The S&P/Case-Shiller composite index of housing prices in 20 
metropolitan areas in the U.S. rose a much higher-than-expected 1.6 per 
cent in July from the previous month. Market consensus was for a more 
modest 0.5 per cent increase after a 1.4 per cent increase in June. The 
10-city index gained 1.7 per cent in July.

"To the degree that the housing market was the culprit behind the 
entire credit crunch, it is encouraging to see another monthly 
improvement in the headline index. However, the U.S. housing market 
still has a long way to go before fully cleansing itself," said Ian 
Pollick, economics strategist for TD Securities.

Overseas markets were mixed Tuesday. The Office for National Statistics 
reported Tuesday that Britain's economy shrank 0.6 per cent in the 
second quarter of 2009, mainly due to improvements in the construction 
industry. The figure was less than the 0.7-per-cent decline estimated 
in August.

London's FTSE 100 index was up 15.05 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 
5,150.65 at midday. Frankfurt's DAX was up 25.82 points, or 0.45 per 
cent, to 5,710.49 and the Paris CAC gained 12.94 points, or 0.34 per 
cent, to 3,812.06.

In Asia, official data in Japan released Tuesday showed consumer prices 
fell 2.2 per cent in August compared with the same month a year 
earlier, while core prices were down 2.4 per cent � the steepest 
decline in 38 years. Tokyo's Nikkei stock average closed up 90.68 
points, or 0.91 per cent, to 10,100.2. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index 
closed up 424.76 points, or 2.06 per cent, to 21,013.17.

On Monday, the S&P/TSX rose 126.33 points, or 1.13 per cent, to 
11,338.72. The Dow ended down 42.25 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 
9,665.19 and the Nasdaq was at up 39.82 points, or 1.9 per cent, to 
2,130.74.