TSX Hits 7-Week High After Rate Cut

Canada's main stock index rose on Wednesday led by mining shares, as investors cheered the Bank of Canada's decision to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point.The TSX index remained above water 69.35 points to 25,488.80.The Canadian dollar subsided 0.24 cents at 69.20 cents U.S. The Bank of Canada today reduced its target for the overnight rate to 3%, with the Bank Rate at 3.25% and the deposit rate at 2.95%. In corporate news, consulting services firm CGI reported first-quarter revenue below estimates. CGI shares took on 76 cents to $165.53.MDA Space fell $3.20, or 11.8%, to the bottom of TSX at $23.90. ON BAYSTREET The TSX Venture Exchange nicked up 0.43 points to 609.86.Seven of 12 TSX subgroups were higher midday, led by materials, ahead 1.2%, gold, brighter 0.9%, and consumer staples, up 0.8%. The five laggards were weighed most by health-care and real-estate, off 0.8%, while utilities slid 0.5%. ON WALLSTREET The S&P 500 and NASDAQ pulled back slightly Wednesday as investors turned toward the first Federal Reserve interest rate decision of 2025, while Nvidia slipped following a strong session.The Dow Jones Industrials nosed ahead 7.32 points to pause for noon hour EST Wednesday at 44,857.67The much-broader index flopped 18.18 points to 6,049.52. The NASDAQ Composite lost 124.08 points to 19,609.50, as Nvidia shares dropped 3% — adding to an already volatile week for the tech giant. A volley of Big Tech earnings are also due Wednesday afternoon, with Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Tesla issuing their quarterly reports.The Fed is scheduled to deliver its latest monetary policy decision at 2 p.m. ET. A news conference with Chair Jerome Powell is also slated for 2:30 p.m. ET.Fed funds futures data reflect a nearly 100% certainty that the central bank will keep rates steady at a target range of 4.25% to 4.5%,Prices for the 10-year Treasury sagged, raising yields to 4.55% from Tuesday’s 4.54%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.Oil prices docked 41 cents to $73.35 U.S. a barrel. Prices for gold jumped $4.50 an ounce to $2,772.10 U.S.