TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index rose more than 300 points Friday, with basic materials stocks leading the gains, while U.S. stock markets were closed for the July Fourth holiday.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 308.17 points at 35,274.84.
Gold prices helped to drive higher the basic materials sector, which includes mining companies. The August gold contract was up US$61.60 at US$4,187.30 an ounce.
“The catalyst for gold prices came in yesterday when we saw a weaker jobs number out of the U.S.,” said Allan Small, senior investment adviser at iA Private Wealth.
A report on Thursday showed U.S. employers added 57,000 jobs to their payrolls last month. That’s growth, which is good for the U.S. economy, but it was also short of the 100,000 jobs economists expected and a slowdown from May’s hiring pace.
The weaker-than-expected result could keep pressure off inflation, which has been accelerating worldwide because of jumps in oil prices caused by the war with Iran. And now that oil prices are back below where they were before the war, if inflation slows in upcoming months, the U.S. Federal Reserve may feel less need to raise interest rates several times this year.
The TSX energy sector also gained ground Friday amid a slight increase in oil prices. The August crude oil contract was up nine cents US at US$68.78 per barrel.
Small said that talks between the U.S. and Iran appear to be on hold as Iran prepares for the daylong funeral of its Supreme Leader that was killed in the war.
“There are also some rumblings that Iran is acting tough again, saying that any tankers or ships coming through the Strait have to go through their approved routes through the Strait. There’s also rumblings that they’re charging tolls, the U.S. is saying that’s not true,” he said.
Iran’s joint military command warned Thursday that all oil tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz must use its approved routes or face a “forceful response,” ratcheting up tensions again over a waterway crucial for international energy supplies.
Going forward, Small said there are questions about what factors can drive the stock market higher.
“We’ve seen such a bull market when it comes to technology (and) AI,” he said.
“How much further can this run? And I think that is an underlying fear for this market in general, for the global market. How long can these memory chip companies continue to show just massive profits and results?”
The Canadian dollar traded for 70.42 cents US compared with 70.52 cents US on Thursday.
The commodities prices are snapshots only as there are no settle prices on U.S. holidays.
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Daniel Johnson, The Canadian Press
With files from The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2026.
