Stock markets drift higher amid mild risk-on tone as oil rises slightly

TORONTO – Stock markets in Canada and the U.S. finished in positive territory on Monday after struggling to find direction through the day. 

Kevin Burkett, portfolio manager at Victoria-based Burkett Asset Management, said markets had a “mild risk-on tone” during the trading session.  

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 73.75 points at 33,181.97.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 165.21 points at 46,669.88. The S&P 500 index was up 29.14 points at 6,611.83, while the Nasdaq composite was up 117.16 points at 21,996.34.

The hesitant trading came as the clock was ticking toward a deadline, one that U.S. President Donald Trump has moved multiple times, where he has threatened to attack Iranian power plants if it does not open the Strait of Hormuz. A fifth of the world’s oil typically sails through the strait during peacetime. 

Iran on Monday rejected the latest ceasefire proposal and instead said it wants a permanent end to the war.

Burkett said that investors are continuing to find comments from Trump to be confusing, particularly regarding the war with Iran. 

“I think there are widely divergent views that either he brings all this to an end and markets recover quickly. Or he gets drawn into a prolonged conflict there,” he said. 

Oil prices likewise rose after seesawing through the day amid uncertainty about what will happen in the war and how long it will slow the global flow of oil and natural gas.

The May crude oil contract was up 87 cents US at US$112.41 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 0.8 per cent to US$109.77 per barrel and remains well above its roughly US$70 price from before the war.

“Energy markets are pricing in an expectation that this conflict does get resolved fairly quickly and that oil flows return to normal,” Burkett said. 

“I think that when you look at Trump’s tweets, and you look at the eye-popping volatility in WTI, you’re missing that, actually, long-term, WTI prices have been much more muted in their shift.” 

Bank stocks were strong, including a 0.8 per cent rise for JPMorgan Chase.

CEO Jamie Dimon said in his annual letter to shareholders released on Monday that the U.S. economy continues to be resilient, and businesses still look healthy. He, though, also acknowledged that prices for stocks and other assets are high, which could imply “anything less than positive outcomes could have a dramatic impact on global markets.”

The Canadian stock market benefited from gains in the industrials and consumer cyclicals sectors. 

“If you’re managing portfolios, you’re as much worried about surprise upside as you are downside. You don’t want to be so defensive that you miss out on a swift recovery,” Burkett said. 

“That’s why some of the more cyclical components were up in Canada today.”

The Canadian dollar traded for 71.86 cents US compared with 71.85 cents US on Thursday.

The June gold contract was up US$5.00 at US$4,684.70 an ounce.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 6, 2026.

— With files from The Associated Press.

Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)