TORONTO -- Oil and gas stocks helped boost the Toronto stock index today as Wall Street finished relatively flat after the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest economic and interest rate policy update.
The S&P/TSX composite index climbed 96.63 points to 15,389.60, with a surging energy sector leading gainers.
The November crude contract was up 79 cents at US$50.69 per barrel.
In New York, major indices were mixed with minor movements after the Fed announced it will begin shrinking its enormous portfolio of bonds and likely raise rates one more time this year.
The Dow Jones industrial average advanced 41.79 points to 22,412.59 and the S&P 500 index inched up 1.59 points to 2,508.24. The Nasdaq composite index edged down 5.28 points to 6,456.04.
The Canadian dollar was trading at an average price of 81.48 cents US, up 0.03 of a cent.
Elsewhere in commodities, the December gold contract gained $5.80 at US$1,316.40 an ounce, the October natural gas contract was down three cents at US$3.09 per mmBTU, and the December copper contract was unchanged at US$2.97 a pound.
