Daily Wrap-up: Oil, gold help TSX climb to 20-month high

Oil, gold help TSX climb to 20-month high... Rise for Canadian manufacturers... Top bosses pay has already exceeded average workers this year...

Daily Wrap-up: Oil, gold help TSX climb to 20-month high
Steve Randall
Oil, gold help TSX climb to 20-month high
The main TSX index hit a high not seen since 2015 Tuesday as oil and gold prices played their part in gains for seven of the ten sectors.

Oil prices climbed in early trading as world markets considered the impact of the new production caps, although later prices reversed and erased the gains. The energy sector closed the session with only a slim rise.

Materials fared better to lead the S&P/TSX Composite with a 2.4 per cent rise, healthcare was the second strongest sector.

Wall Street also closed higher although slipped from earlier highs as oil prices declined. Positive data helped most European and Asian markets rise.
 
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed 115.4 (0.76 per cent)
The Dow Jones closed up 117.1 (0.59 per cent)
Oil is trending lower (Brent $55.68, WTI $52.50 at 4.10pm)
Gold is trending higher (1160.50 at 4.10pm)
The loonie is valued at U$0.7444
 
Rise for Canadian manufacturers
The Canadian manufacturing sector saw an increase in December with the Markit Canada Manufacturing PMI rising to 51.8 from 51.5 in November.

While the gain was only small, it means a more positive year-end than in 2015 and the measure of new orders also rose to its highest level since the end of 2014. New exports were also up slightly.

The weaker loonie and higher material costs meant that margins were cut by increased input prices.
 
Top bosses pay has already exceeded average workers this year
The highest-paid bosses in Canada will have already exceeded the average worker’s annual wages.

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that the top-earning CEOs only needed until 11.47am on Jan. 3 to earn the same as the Canadian average wage.

The centre’s estimate of the average earnings of Canada’s top 100 CEOs is  $9.5 million, based on 2015 data, 193 times that of an average industrial worker.
 

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