North American stock markets started the trading week sharply higher after U.S. President Donald Trump said serious trade talks with China will begin after the U.S. received two “very good calls” from Beijing.
Stock markets were hammered at the end of last week after Trump responded angrily on Twitter following China’s announcement of new tariffs on $75 billion in U.S. goods.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 104.32 points at 16,141.90.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 150.26 points at 25,779.16. The S&P 500 index was up 15.70 points at 2,862.81, while the Nasdaq composite was up 53.78 points at 7,805.55.
The Canadian dollar traded for 75.16 cents US compared with an average of 75.13 cents US on Friday.
The October crude contract was up US$1.04 at US$55.21 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up 6.1 cents at US$2.22 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$2.00 at US$1,539.60 an ounce and the September copper contract was up 0.45 of a cent at US$2.53 a pound.