TORONTO, April 13 (Reuters) - Shares of Canadian mining and energy company Sherritt International (S.TO) rose 17.6 percent on Monday, after reports that the U.S. government plans to ease some of its restrictions that curb investments in Cuba.
"Every time (there has been a rumor) that Castro has died, which has been half a dozen times in the last 10 or 15 years, Sherritt's shares go up about 3 percent, so clearly the market thinks that an easing of U.S. restrictions on Cuba is good for Sherritt," said Salman Partners analyst Raymond Goldie.
"What's backing that up is ... that Sherritt may find buyers for some of their Cuban assets, particularly the oil and gas ones," added Goldie.
Sherritt shares rose 57 cents to C$3.80 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Monday afternoon.
U.S. President Barack Obama plans to allow U.S. telecommunications companies to apply for licenses in Cuba, under a policy shift to be unveiled later on Monday, a U.S. official said.
The easing of long-standing commercial restrictions will be part of Obama's announcement that he is lifting some U.S. limits to allow Cuban-Americans to travel more freely to the communist-ruled island and increase financial help to family members.