Stockhouse @ the Bell: Markets continue their uptrend

Today on Stockhouse

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Thom Calandra is heading back to Ghana next week to see some classic gold drilling.

A new discovery in South Texas could be the most important U.S. oil discovery in 40 years, according to Porter Stansberry.

While Larry D. Spears listed nine good reasons for getting out of a stock.

And Mike Lathigee writes that the April Economic Outlook is the most optimistic in the last two years.

Top Bullboards post: On the heel of the release of its annual financial results 1marketmaker wrote of High River Gold Mines (TSX: T.HRG, Stock Forum): “I will do as I always do. Buy on the way up.
“Very pleased with the Audited and am super happy to see no bad news and amazing profits if it were not for the prognoz writedown. We are ready to become a world class company again.”

Top Bullboard: Newcastle Minerals (TSX: V.NCM, Stock Forum) topped the Bullboards Tuesday with 88 posts.

Top blog: ghost11 suggested that markets are ready for an upswing in the GHOST TRADER2 blog.

For news about small stocks that made big moves in Tuesday’s trading, please read the Stockhouse Canadian Small and Micro-cap Stock Report.

Word on Wall Street

"The tide of rising earnings and improving economy is just more important than some of the late distractions," said David Kelly, the chief market strategist for JPMorgan Funds in New York in an interview with Bloomberg. "Germany is the most important player within Europe. If you see a rebound in German confidence, that makes you feel better about the European recovery and that is positive for U.S. companies."

Today In The Markets

Loonie shoots higher on BOC interest rate plans

DJIA	11,117.06	+25.01
NASDAQ	2,500.31	+20.20
S&P500	1,207.17	+9.65
S&P/TSX	12,113.53	+10.56
S&P/TSX Venture	1,652.20	-1.76

Toronto & New York (The Canadian Press) - The loonie posted its biggest single-day gain in nine months Tuesday following a bullish economic forecast from Canada's central bank.

The Canadian dollar was up 1.58 cents at 100.12 cents US after the Bank of Canada signalled it may raise rates very soon - a move that would likely increase international demand for Canadian bonds and dollars. Earlier, the loonie had gained as much as 1.76 cents to 100.30 cents US.

The central bank projected that Canada's economy will grow a faster-than-expected 3.7 per cent this year, and inflation will also move higher. In its last forecast in January, the bank said the economy would grow 2.9 per cent in 2010.

Because of the strong economic outlook, the Bank of Canada said it was withdrawing its conditional commitment to keep the key lending rate at its current record low of 0.25 per cent until the end of June. That sets the stage for a quarter-point or even a half-point hike on June 1.

The Canadian dollar will remain strong as long as investors expect the bank to raise rates and tighten the money supply. But a high loonie could, in turn, force the bank to cut rates again later in the year, said Danielle Park of Venable Park Investment Counsel in Barrie, Ont.

"They started to hike (rates) in '02 and then had to backtrack because they realized the economy was not recovering as strongly as they'd hoped," Park said.

"And the spiking dollar really plays into that...they raise rates, that pushes up the currency, and that puts a drag on the expansion" since a strong dollar hurts manufacturers and other businesses that sell their products south of the border, she added.
The Toronto stock market closed up 10.56 points at 12,113.53, giving up some of its earlier gains amid a weak gold sector.

The gold sector fell 1.6 per cent even as the June bullion contract added $3.40 to US$1,139.20 an ounce. Barrick Gold Corp. lost 73 cents to C$39.03.

The Toronto energy sector was the biggest gainer Tuesday, adding 1.16 per cent as the June crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange crept up 72 cents to US$83.85 a barrel. Encana Corp. stock gained 34 cents C$31.77.

The base metals sector was nearly flat, slipping 0.04 per cent as the May copper contract on the Nymex gained 1.65 cents to US$3.51 per pound. Shares in Teck Resources Ltd. lost 71 cents to C$41.71 before the miner reported its first-quarter results.

Please click here for the complete U.S. and Canadian market summaries.

After-Hours News

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL, Stock Forum)
The company reported a big jump in its Q2 financial results after the bell on Tuesday. Apple, which this month released its iPad tablet, said net income jumped to $3.07 billion or $3.33 per share, from $1.62 billion or $1.79 per share in the comparable quarter a year ago. Revenues were up 49% to $13.5 billion. Analysts had forecast the company to earn $2.45 per share on revenue of $12 million.

North American Palladium (TSX: T.PDN, Stock Forum)
The miner announced late on Tuesday that it had entered into a bought deal worth $75 million. The deal, which is led by Cormark Securities and Haywood Securities, comprises the sale of 15 million units at a price of $5 per unit. Each unit consists of one common share and one half of one common share purchase warrant, which will entitle the holder to acquire an additional common share for $6.50 up until 18 months after the offering.