(RTTNews) - The Canadian market closed slightly up on Friday with technology stocks contributing to the positive close. Data showing a much bigger than expected increase in Canadian jobs growth in the month of November aided sentiment.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index, which hit a new record high at 25,826.98, closed up 11.76 points or 0.05% at 25,691.80. The index gained 0.17% in the week.
Data from Statistics Canada said employment in Canada rose by 51,000 in November of 2024, the most in seven months, extending the slight change of 14,500 from the previous month and well above the market consensus of 25,000.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in Canada rose to 6.8% in November, from 6.5% in the previous month. The unemployment rate was expected to come in at 6.6%.
A separate report from Statistics Canada said average hourly earnings in Canada increased to C$ 36.73 in October over the previous month.
The Ivey Business School said that the Ivey Purchasing Managers Index in Canada rose to 52.3 in November, up from 52.0 in October. The Index was expected to rise to 53.1.
Laurentian Bank of Canada (LB.TO) climbed 5.4% after reporting an increase in quarterly earnings. For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, Laurentian Bank reported net income of $40.7 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.88, compared with net income of $30.6 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.67 for the fourth quarter of 2023.
Canadian Western Bank (CWB.TO), which was scheduled to report its earnings today, has announced that it will announce its earnings in mid-December. The stock closed down 5.4%.
BRP Inc (DOO.TO) surged 7% despite reporting lower earnings. The company reported a net income of $27.3 million for the third-quarter, a decrease of 69.7% compared to the year-ago quarter.
Technology stock Bitfarms (BITF.TO) soared nearly 10%. Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO), Sangoma Technologies (STC.TO), Enghouse Systems (ENGH.TO), Celestica Inc (CLS.TO), Coveo Solutions (CVO.TO), Descartes Systems Group (DSG.TO) and Lightspeed Commerce (LSPD.TO) gained 2 to 5%.