Canada’s main stock index edged higher on Friday, buoyed by gains in real estate stocks, while concerns over U.S. trade deals ahead of the looming July 9 tariff deadline weighed on sentiment.
The S&P/TSX composite index hit a fresh record high and was last up 0.1% at 27055.24 points. The index was on track to log a weekly gain.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Washington will start sending letters to countries on Friday specifying what tariff rates they will face on imports to the United States.
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney and Trump are aiming to reach some form of trade deal by July 21.
“The threat of further global tariffs remains… but the most severely negative global trade scenarios still look less likely than they did a few months ago,” economists at RBC Economics said in a note.
Data on Friday showed Greater Toronto Area home sales rose for a third straight month in June and prices extended their recent decline.
TSX hits record high as investors assess economic data, trade talks
On the TSX, real estate stocks led sectoral gains, rising 1.4%. Allied Properties up 2%, Dream Industrial REIT advanced 1.6%, among the top gainers on the benchmark index.
Mining shares edged 0.1% higher, energy shares were flat.
Copper prices retreated on Friday. Copper miners Capstone Copper down 1.3% and Ero Copper down 1.1%, were among the bottom performers on the main index.
S&P’s Canada services PMI data on Friday showed that Canada’s services economy contracted at a higher rate in June with U.S. trade policy uncertainty leading to decreased activity and increased cost pressures,
Meanwhile, Trump’s tax-cut legislation cleared its final hurdle in the U.S. Congress on Thursday, with plans to sign it into law later in the day.
