Following the rally seen during the previous session, Canadian stocks have shown a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Thursday.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index failed to sustain an initial move to the upside and has subsequently bounced back and forth across the unchanged line. Currently, the index is up 113.44 points or 0.3 percent at 34,095.26.
The choppy trading on Bay Street comes as traders remain optimistic about a peaceful end to the conflict in the Middle East but may want to see more tangible results from U.S.-Iran negotiations before making big bets.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. and Iran have had "good talks over the last 24 hours" and expressed confidence a deal could be reached in the coming days.
A report from Axios said U.S. officials expect Iran's response to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war within the next 24-48 hours.
Noting some U.S. officials are skeptical a deal will come together, Axios said the White House wants a diplomatic breakthrough by the time Trump wraps his China trip next Friday and could resume military action if a deal is not in hand by then.
Despite the lackluster performance by the broader markets, gold stocks have moved sharply higher amid a continued surge by the price of the precious metal, driving the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index up by 3.4 percent.
Technology stocks are also turning in a strong performance on the day, with the S&P/TSX Capped Information Technology Index up by 1.2 percent.
On the other hand, energy stocks have moved sharply amid an extended nosedive by the price of crude oil, dragging the S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index down by 3.0 percent.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.