TORONTO – Canadian and U.S. stock markets made a turnaround Friday afternoon to end a rocky week on a more positive note, with Canada’s main stock index gaining almost 200 points and U.S. markets also rising.
The uptick heading toward the bell was a “sigh of relief” after a volatile week that saw markets flip down, up and down again amid a constant flow of news about U.S. tariffs, said Kathrin Forrest, equity investment specialist at Capital Group.
President Donald Trump enacted tariffs on Canadian imports on Tuesday and Ottawa responded swiftly with tariffs of its own. But in the days that followed, Trump has announced various exemptions and delays as well as new tariffs, creating confusion and frustration for politicians, business owners and investors.
“Uncertainty has led to larger volatility,” said Forrest.
“It’s difficult to keep track of the almost hourly changes in direction.”
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 174.72 points at 24,758.76.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 222.64 points at 42,801.72. The S&P 500 index was up 31.68 points at 5,770.20, while the Nasdaq composite was up 126.96 points at 18,196.22.
The gains Friday weren’t dramatic enough to make up for the past week. The S&P 500 ended the week more than six per cent below the all-time high it set last month.
Some of the relief Friday afternoon may have come from comments made by U.S. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, noted Forrest.
Powell said he thinks the economy looks stable at the moment, and that the central bank isn’t in a hurry to cut interest rates as a result.
“Overall, I would say his comments were reassuring,” said Forrest.
The latest report on the U.S. job market showed the economy added slightly fewer jobs than expected, but it was still an acceleration from the previous month.
Amid the uncertainty over tariffs, expectations for how many times the Fed will cut this year have been rising, said Forrest, but it’s still expected to hold its pause in March.
“The overall takeaway for today was that private sector employment remains strong,” she said.
However, she said next month’s report may start to show the effects of initiatives to reduce federal employment.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Canada is expected to cut next week, Forrest said, as the economic data north of the border hasn’t been as resilient.
The latest report on the Canadian employment situation showed the unemployment rate was unchanged while the economy added few jobs.
Next week will also bring inflation data in the U.S., said Forrest, noting Powell has said he expected a bumpy path for price growth.
“CPI in the U.S. continues to be an important data point to watch,” she said.
The Canadian dollar traded for 69.58 cents US compared with 69.89 cents US on Thursday.
The April crude oil contract was up 78 cents at US$67.04 per barrel and the April natural gas contract was up 10 cents at US$4.40 per mmBTU.
The April gold contract was down US$12.50 at US$2,914.10 an ounce and the May copper contract was down 10 cents at US$4.71 a pound.
— With files from The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025.
Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)
