Canadian Stocks Climb For Fifth Consecutive Week as Tech Gains

Aoyon Ashraf, Bloomberg News

TMX Group Inc. signage and stock prices are displayed on a screen in the broadcast center of the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) in Toronto. Photographer: Pawel Dwulit/Bloomberg , Photographer: Pawel Dwulit/Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks rose in Toronto, capping a fifth straight week of gains, the longest stretch in over a year.

The S&P/TSX Composite index added 1.2% on Friday, with the health-care and technology sectors posting the biggest increases. Tech stocks have gained 25% this year, led by e-commerce company Shopify Inc.’s more than 75% surge. The e-commerce sector has been a favorite play on Wall Street during the coronavirus pandemic amid a growing consensus that upcoming results will reveal a potentially permanent shift in consumer behavior toward online shopping.

Oil prices edged lower for the week after paring losses following the dramatic collapse on Monday that saw prices in New York plunge below zero for the first time in history.

Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled a government program on Friday that aims to reduce rents for the country’s small businesses by 75%. Commercial property owners will be eligible for loans to cover 50% of the rent over three months beginning in April, Trudeau said Friday in Ottawa. Finance Minister Bill Morneau also said on Friday that the Canadian government hopes to avoid bailing out any particular sector.

On the debt side, private and structured credit offer the best value in fixed income, while the pain isn’t over yet for public debt markets, according to the investment head of Sun Life Financial Inc.

The Canadian dollar weakened slightly to C$1.4087 per U.S. dollar. The 10-year government bond yield fell 2.3 basis points to 0.576%.