Canada’s main stock index rallied on Wednesday as a smaller-than-expected increase in interest rate by the Bank of Canada raised hopes that the central bank could be reining in on one of its faster monetary tightening cycles ever.
At 10:59 a.m. ET, the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index jumped 1.32% to 19,348.72, its highest level in more than three weeks.
The Bank of Canada raised its policy rate by half a percentage point to 3.75%, a 14-year high, against the backdrop of bets for another 75 basis points increase.
Bank of Canada surprises with 50 bps hike, says slight recession possible
It forecast that the economy could soon slip into a slight recession, but investors took comfort in the central bank reaching a potential pivot in its monetary policy.
“There is general positivity and it all revolves around the great pivot word,” said Robert McWhirter, president and portfolio manager at Selective Asset Management Inc.
McWhirter said what markets want to hear from either the BoC or the U.S. Federal Reserve by the end of the year is, “we’ve gone far enough or these rising interest rates had a much more negative impact than we expected.”
Rogers Communications Inc jumped 6.8%, while Shaw Communications Inc gained 9.7% after Canada imposed conditions on Rogers’ proposed remedy to overcome competition bureau concerns about its C$20 billion ($14.7 billion) deal.
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