Canadian stocks closed little changed on Friday as the prospects of an end to the gulf crisis amid reports indicating that Iran relaxed its hard stance supported the market. However, supply disruption concerns due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz restricted the gains.
After opening just above yesterday's close, today the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index lost momentum early in the session and traded lower. However, it gained ground towards the end to settle at 33,904.11, down by 8.82 points (or 0.03%).
Six of the 11 sectors posted gains today, with the healthcare sector leading the pack.
Soon after the breakout of gulf war on February 28, Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz.
After the first round of peace talks held on April 11-12 failed, regional intermediaries in the Arabian neighborhood and Muslim nations persuaded the U.S. for a second round of talks.
Demanding complete withdrawal of the U.S. naval blockade imposed on Iranian ports that stopped ships travelling to and from Iran's ports, the Iranian regime did not heed to calls for another round of negotiations with the U.S. The talks were supposed to be held on Tuesday.
Concerns of a long and expansive war in the gulf region with devastating damage to oil and energy installations, apart from human lives, started growing larger.
Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to extend the previously declared two-week ceasefire, which was set to lapse on April 22. However, he asserted that the blockade on Iranian ports would remain.
With both the U.S. and Iran crippling oil and energy transit across the Hormuz strait, investors became restless as inflationary pressures due to the surge in oil prices dictated global markets, including Canada, driving them to "wait and watch" mode.
Long-term inflationary concerns forced traders to stay away from riskier assets.
Today, IRNA, the state-run news outlet of Iran, confirmed that Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will travel to Pakistan, and then Oman and Russia, starting Friday evening.
While in Pakistan, Araghchi is expected to relay Iran's concerns to Pakistan, which is acting as a mediator between the U.S. and Iran.
Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt are working hard to ensure the gulf crisis does not get out of control.
On the social media platform X, Araghchi mentioned that his scheduled trip is focused on "bilateral matters and regional developments" though he did not hint about the next round of negotiations with the U.S.
The CNN reported that U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner will likely represent the U.S.
The attention of market participants is now focused on gauging how things develop over the weekend.
Data released by Statistics Canada today revealed that retail sales (excluding autos) increased 0.50% month-over-month in February. Retail sales increased 0.60% month-over-month in March, according to a preliminary estimate.
With the timeline for review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement closing in, investors are awaiting some "green signal" from Prime Minister Mark Carney's newly formed advisory committee (comprising 24 members) on Canada-U.S. economic relations.
Months before, Trump hinted that the U.S. may withdraw from the agreement, unsettling Canadian investors.
As of now, Canadian exports to the U.S. circumvent the tariffs through the CUSMA deal.
On the monetary front, a Reuters poll indicated a majority of economists expect the Bank of Canada will hold its overnight rate steady in its upcoming meeting next week.
Despite the increase in fuel prices, inflation for March was in the 2.40% range, within the target of the BoC.
Major sectors that gained in today's trading were Healthcare (3.92%), Utilities (0.38%), Consumer Staples (0.34%), and IT (0.29%).
Among the individual stocks, Curaleaf Holdings Inc (13.00%), Transalta Corporation (2.90%), Metro Inc (1.35%), Celestica Inc (4.38%), and Computer Modelling Group Ltd (3.86%) were the prominent gainers.
Major sectors that lost in today's trading were Industrials (0.18%), Real Estate (0.63%), Communication Services (1.17%), and Energy (1.35%).
Among the individual stocks, Athabasca Oil Corp (3.53%), CDN Natural Res (2.44%), Rogers Communications Inc (3.66%), and Firstservice Corporation (2.20%) were the notable losers.
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April 24, 2026 15:15 ET Economics news flow was relatively light this week even as the conflict in the Middle East continued, raising concerns for policymakers. In the U.S., spending data, initial jobless claims and pending home sales were the highlights. Business confidence in the biggest euro area economy was in focus in Europe. Inflation data from Japan gained attention in Asia.