Toronto stocks rallied to their fifth consecutive week of gains and their highest close in more than four years on Friday as firm gold and oil prices boosted resource issues while news from Apple Computer underpinned tech stocks. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index closed up 62.14 points, or 0.65 percent, at 9,558.50, its highest close since December 2000. Volume was 280 million shares worth C$3.9 billion.
The index gained 2.1 percent on the week.
Analysts said sentiment had shifted following a lackluster January and investors were feeling a little more comfortable about the near-term outlook.
"The main factors driving this particular move would be the fact that earnings reports have been pretty strong, for one," said Elvis Picardo, chief market strategist at Global Securities.
"Secondly, the fear of interest rates rising rapidly has dissipated to a great extent in both Canada and the US".
But Picardo said such market gains are unlikely to last given expectations for lower economic growth this year compared with 2004 and single-digit return forecasts on markets.
"I think we're heading for some turbulence ahead," he said. "Investors are going to be less sanguine about economic prospects fairly quickly."
Six of the TSX's 10 main subgroups ended higher on Friday with more than 1 percent gains in the technology, energy and materials sectors.
Materials led the way, rising 1.74 percent as its component gold index got a boost from higher bullion prices.
Gold hit a nine-day high in New York on weakness in the US dollar and apparent US opposition to the sale of gold reserves by the International Monetary Fund. It closed at $422 an ounce in New York.
Placer Dome rose 38 Canadian cents, or 1.75 percent, to C$22.10, Goldcorp gained 27 Canadian cents, or 1.61 percent, to C$17.07 and Meridian Gold rose to 88 Canadian cents, or 3.68 percent, to C$24.78.
The tech group gained 1.38 percent, helped by Apple Computer Inc's news of a 2-for-1 stock split. Stock splits can boost market sentiment because they indicate a company's optimism about its future.
Tundra Semiconductor rose 64 Canadian cents, or 4.9 percent, to C$13.69, Nortel Networks gained 13 Canadian cents, or 3.43 percent, to C$3.92 and Research In Motion was up C$1.72, or 1.86 percent, at C$94.05.
Meanwhile, the energy sector added 1.07 percent as crude prices firmed above $47 a barrel, partly on concerns that OPEC may cut its output in the spring.
The industrials, health-care, consumer staples and discretionary sectors all ended lower.
Market momentum was comfortably positive with 769 advancers and 627 decliners.
The blue-chip S&P/TSX 60 index rose 3.59 points, or 0.69 percent, to 526.68.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 50.24 points, or 0.47 percent, at 10,799.85. The Nasdaq composite index was up 23.59 points, or 1.15 percent, at 2,076.69.
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