Financials lift TSX, U.S. stock markets surge higher

Photo: The Canadian Press

Gains in the financial sector helped lift Canada's main stock index in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets surged higher.

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 40.80 points at 15,116.22.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 673.07 points at 25,138.23. The S&P 500 index was up 59.39 points at 3,014.84, while the Nasdaq composite was up 110.02 points at 9,434.61.

The Canadian dollar traded for 72.48 cents US compared with 71.51 cents US on Monday.

The July crude contract was up 42 cents at US$33.67 per barrel and the July natural gas contract was up four cents at US$1.92 per mmBTU.

The June gold contract was down US$27.70 at US$1,707.80 an ounce and the July copper contract was up four cents at nearly US$2.43 a pound.