Canada’s main stock index ended higher on Wednesday as mining stocks rallied and investors looked ahead to quarterly earnings reports, but gains for the index were held in check after the federal budget proposed raising a tax on investment profits. U.S. indexes closed lower after a choppy day of trading.
The S&P/TSX composite index ended up 13.18 points, or 0.1%, at 21,656.05, after five straight days of declines.
“There is some dip buying going on at the margins,” said Elvis Picardo, a portfolio manager at Luft Financial, iA Private Wealth. “Mining stocks, we’ve seen the rebound after being sold off [Tuesday]. The big question is whether Q1 earnings will be strong enough to provide the impetus for the markets to grind higher.”
The materials group, which includes metal miners and fertilizer companies, was up 0.8% as copper prices climbed.
Technology was another bright spot, rising 0.6%, and heavily weighted financials added…
