BoC cuts, Nasdaq roars

As expected, the Bank of Canada cut the key lending rate by 50 basis points to 3.25%, in the wake of climbing unemployment and other economic data. The TSX gained 0.6% for the session, though sectors were mixed. Strong gains in materials and tech helped outweigh weakness in health care and telcos.

Miners were among the day’s biggest gainers, including SSR Mining by 7.66% and Novagold Resources at 7.66%. Other key names were CNQ up 1.12%, Telus -3.76% and Bausch Health -9.07%. Gold advanced US$23 to US$2,717 while WTI crude jumped 2.55% to US$70.35.

In New York, tech lead a convincing rally as the Nasdaq jumped 1.77% and the S&P 0.82%, though the Dow declined 0.22%. Major movers: Broadcom leapt 6.63%, Tesla 5.93, Alphabet 5.52%, CVS -6.15% and Nvidia -3.14% as the most-active name again. Bitcoin soared 4.25% to nearly US$100,000 while the U.S. 10-year yield inched up to 4.269%.

⛏ SSR Mining (SSRM-T) +7.66%

🥇 NovaGold Resources Inc (NG-T) +7.66%

🛢 Canadian Natural Rsrcs (CNQ-T) +1.12%

📱 Telus Corp (T-T) -3.76%

👨‍⚕️ Bausch Health Companies Inc. (BHC-T) -9.07%

🧬 Broadcom (AVGO-Q) +6.63%

🚗 Tesla Inc (TSLA-Q) +5.93%

🧮 Alphabet Inc (GOOG-Q) +5.52%

👨‍⚕️ CVS Health Corp (CVS-N) -6.15%

💾 NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA-Q) -3.14%

🅱 Bitcoin (BTCUSD) (CRYPTO:BTC) +4.25%