The TSX financial sector was ahead 1.6% as Royal Bank regained $1.59 to $52.60. TD Bank rose $1.01 to $35.51. Bank of Montreal gained 40¢ to $35.15.

The TSX consumer staples group climbed 1.8%. Cott Corp. fizzed up $1.42 to $28.10 after it announced the acquisition of Premium Beverage Packers of the United States.

Loblaw gained $1.65 to $62.75. Shares in Empire Co. Ltd., which controls Sobeys Inc., were up 81¢ at $61.75.

The information technology sector gained 1.1% although Nortel Networks fell 8¢ to $2.12. Celestica was up $1.15 to $34.45, while Research In Motion gave up 22¢ to $17.31.

The gold sector fell back 4%, as the spot bullion price slipped US$1.70 to US$319 an ounce. Glamis Gold shed 98¢ to $13.42 and Kinross slid 26¢ to $3.62.

In Canadian economic news, Statistics Canada said manufacturers paid 5.4% less for raw materials in May than a year earlier, the 10th consecutive year-over-year decline.

Toronto volume was 181.2 million shares. Decliners outpaced advancers 545 to 525 with 195 unchanged.

The TSX Venture Exchange was down 9.61 at 1,158.84.

In New York, stocks closed at their session highs Thursday as rumors about possible accounting issues at General Motors blew over and the impact of the WorldCom scandal continued to dissipate.

The Dow Jones industrial average finished with a gain of 149.81 points, or 1.6%, to 9,269.92. The Nasdaq composite index rose 29.87 points, or 2.1%, to 1,459.20, and the S&P 500 added 17.11 points, or 1.8%, to 990.64.

Investors took some encouragement before the markets opened when the U.S. Commerce Department reported that the American economy grew at an annual rate of 6.1% in the first quarter of 2002, its strongest showing in more than two years.

The Canadian dollar set a new high for the year, gaining 0.30¢ to US66.13¢– its first close over US66¢ in almost a year.