Canadian stocks advanced on Wednesday after tumbling in the previous session as U.S. President Donald Trump extended the ceasefire in the U.S.-Iran war, which calmed the market. However, the ongoing blockade of Strait of Hormuz capped the gains.
After opening above yesterday's close, the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index gave back some ground but traded positive throughout the session before settling at 33,955.11, up by 146.81 points (or 0.43%).
Five of the 11 sectors posted gains today, with the healthcare sector leading the pack.
Today, market sentiments received a boost following the announcement of an extension of the ceasefire in the ongoing U.S.-Israel versus Iran war.
U.S.-Israeli forces attacked Iran on February 28, starting a war following which Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz and prevented oil exports from Arab nations to the rest of the world, triggering a huge energy crisis.
To give diplomacy a chance for ending the conflict, U.S. President Donald Trump halted all attacks on Iran for a period of two weeks since April 8.
Simultaneously, delegates from both the nations held talks in Pakistan to find ways to end the conflict. However, the talks failed and Trump ordered U.S. naval forces to block ship traffic from and to Iranian ports.
After persuasion from regional intermediaries, Trump announced a second round of talks but warned that the U.S. would restart bombing if Iran failed to reach a deal this time.
The same day, Trump announced the capture of an Iranian vessel by U.S. forces which angered Iran.
With U.S. Vice President JD Vance ready to head a team of negotiators to Pakistan, Iran remained reluctant to participate.
With the ceasefire announced by Trump set to lapse on April 22, concerns of an expansive and serious war in the gulf region compelled investors away from risky bets.
Yesterday, Trump surprised the markets by announcing an extension of the truce with no specific timeline.
Trump also expressed readiness to give Iranian leaders some time to come up with a peace proposal. However, Trump did not withdraw the blockade to Iran's trade across the Strait of Hormuz.
This unilateral and open-ended call by Trump in response to requests from Pakistani mediators to give diplomacy one more chance to end hostilities revived the momentum among traders.
Meanwhile, Iran seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz and escorted them to Iran's shores, asserting its grip over the strategic chokepoint and keeping the tensions alive and limiting the upside movement in Canadian stocks.
Britain's maritime security agency reported that three container ships have been hit by gunfire near the strait.
In Canada, aside from the gulf war, the focus of investors is also glued to the talks on the renewal of Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on free trade. The CUSMA deal that insulates most of the Canadian exports to the U.S. from Trump's tariffs is up for renewal. The three countries must agree by July 1 to keep the deal functioning.
Prime Minister Mark Carney selected a new team of advisers to conduct the trade talks with the U.S. to spearhead the negotiations.
Data released by Statistics Canada today revealed that new housing prices in Canada fell by 0.20% month on month in March following a 0.30% increase in February, contrary to market forecasts of a 0.20% rise.
Major sectors that gained in today's trading were Healthcare (6.63%), Communication Services (2.77%), Materials (1.44%), Energy (1.31%), and IT (0.51%).
Among the individual stocks, Curaleaf Holdings Inc (25.66%), Rogers Communications Inc (13.55%), Energy Fuels Inc (10.31%), Enerflex Ltd (5.82%), Headwater Exploration Inc (4.23%), and Ces Energy Solutions Corp (4.03%) were the prominent gainers.
Major sectors that lost in today's trading were Utilities (0.13%), Financials (0.36%), Real Estate (0.39%), Industrials (0.41%), and Consumer Staples (0.93%).
Among the individual stocks, Metro Inc (2.72%), Empire Company Limited (2.09%), Altus Group Limited (8.57%), Allied Properties Real Estate (1.70%), Intact Financial Corporation (1.22%), and Canadian Utilities Ltd (1.65%) were the notable losers.
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Market Analysis
April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.