Financials Lift Bay Street

Roger Biduk writes:

A late-day revival in financials helped push the Toronto stock market higher Friday as a multibillion-dollar taxpayer guarantee is expected to finally end the uncertainty around the asset-backed commercial paper market.
Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index advanced 126.65 points to 8,552.00 for a gain of 37 points this week.
The TSX Venture Exchange ticked 1.41 points lower to 699.04.
The Canadian dollar fell 1.11 cents to 81.77 cents US after Statistics Canada reported the inflation rate dropped to two per cent last month, from 2.6 per cent in October, as gasoline price eased 14.4 per cent.

The TSX financial sector was up 1.3 per cent after Ottawa and the governments of Ontario, Quebec and Alberta agreed to "partner" in supporting a restructuring of $32 billion in commercial paper that has been frozen for the past 16 months. National Bank (TSX:NA), pummelled this week because of its ABCP exposure, gained $3.24 or 12.7 per cent to $28.86.

Another bright spot was Research In Motion Ltd. (TSX:RIM), up $6.59 or 14 per cent to $53.32 after the BlackBerry maker posted a 66 per cent surge in quarterly revenue to US$2.78 billion despite a jerky rollout of new smartphones. RIM also issued a jolly outlook for the holiday season and beyond.
Auto parts stocks were mixed after the Bush bailout. Magna International (TSX:MG.A), Canada's largest parts maker, rose 80 cents to $36.24 while Linamar (TSX:LNR) declined 12 cents to $3.54.

Roger Biduk writes:
The Toronto energy sector was up 0.5 per cent as the January crude oil contract, which expired at the end of the session, fell $2.35 to US$33.87 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, following the previous day's decline of almost US$4 a barrel. But the February contract moved up 69 cents to US$42.36 as the American currency strengthened.
EnCana Corp. (TSX:ECA) fell 60 cents to $53.90. Petro-Canada (TSX:PCA) was ahead 15 cents to $27.05 after a tentative settlement to end a 13-month-old lockout at its Montreal oil refinery, which has been kept running by managers.

Gold moved lower with the February contract in New York down $23.20 to US$837.40 an ounce, but the TSX gold sector rose 3.25 per cent. Kinross Gold Corp. (TSX:G) rose $1.07 to $20.75.

The industrial sector was the biggest weight on the TSX index, with Canadian Pacific (TSX:CP) down $1.48 to $39.75 while Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B) declined six cents to $4.14.
Potash Corp. (TSX:POT) fell $1.34 to $88.66 after the fertilizer giant lowered its 2008 profit guidance due to wilting demand for crop nutrients in a blighted global economy. PotashCorp also issued layoff notices to more than 900 employees.

The consumer discretionary sector boosted the TSX by the end of the day as media and retail stocks soared. CanWest Global Communications (TSX:CGS.A) advanced 5.5 cents to 45 cents, and Torstar (TSX:TS-B) ran ahead $1.67 to $10.02.
Rona Inc. (TSX:RON) gained $1 to $11.89 and Reitmans Canada (TSX:RET.A) rose $1.38 to $11.13.

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