By Adriano Marchese


Stocks in Toronto were firmly higher Wednesday.

Retail sales in Canada nudged up for a second straight month in June, thanks to car dealers that made up for softness in other sectors and flattening sales volumes.

Most Canadian sectors were trending higher, with strong gains in tech, materials and tech services sector. Of the few laggards, energy was the most prominent.

Canada's S&P/TSX Composite Index climbed 0.92% to 19871.96 while the blue-chip S&P/TSX 60 rose 0.88% to 1188.49.

Atlas Engineered Products shares rose by 9% to 1.21 Canadian dollars after it said it acquired Leon Chouinard et Fils in New Brunswick, a manufacturer of roof trusses and wall panels, for C$28.9 million.


Other market movers:


Aurion Resources rose 2% to C$0.51 after it said it signed an agreement granting Kinross Gold the right to earn up to 70% interest in one of its properties in Finland.

Shares in Draganfly were 2.7% higher at C$1.15 after it said it was awarded a contract to provide drones and drone pilot crews to help with detecting and mapping wildfires in Canada.


Write to Adriano Marchese at adriano.marchese@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-23-23 1223ET