(Toronto, Canada) – Canada’s main stock index climbed 2.3 per cent on November 4, as a post-election rally lifted North American equities while sharply divergent moves in gold and oil separated winners from losers in Toronto.

The S&P/TSX composite finished at 36,341.40, gaining approximately 809 points, according to Baystreet’s closing report. The completed trading session provides a new measure of the financial-market response to the U.S. midterms, beyond the election results themselves.

Gold shares rose 9 per cent and materials advanced 7.4 per cent, while energy fell 6.2 per cent. Ten of the market’s 12 subgroups finished higher. The Canadian dollar was quoted at 71.61 U.S. cents.

The rally developed after an initially unsettled international response. In a November 4 Reuters market briefing, Morning Bid host Mike Dolan described early losses in Asian technology shares and Nasdaq futures before markets recovered ahead of the North American opening.

Dolan said the Democratic sweep had been widely signalled by opinion polls and betting markets. He linked the initial technology weakness to concerns that a Democratic Congress could bring greater scrutiny of artificial intelligence and resistance to data-centre construction, rather than describing the election outcome itself as wholly unexpected.

By mid-morning in Toronto, financial and telecommunications stocks were each up about 1.9 per cent, MT Newswires reported. Energy was already the weakest sector as crude prices declined for a third day. The final session extended that contrast between the broader market and oil-related businesses.

Baystreet reported oil down US$7.42 to US$88.67 a barrel and gold up US$131.50 to US$4,071.90 an ounce. In the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained about 3 per cent, the S&P 500 rose 1.6 per cent and the Nasdaq composite added 1.4 per cent.

Wednesday’s closing figures establish a strong first full trading-day response to the vote. They do not establish that anticipated changes in regulation or U.S. policy have been enacted.

Accompanying image: editorial illustration.

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