Toronto stocks ended at a 30-month highs on Wednesday. The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 52.92 points at 8,040.17 — its highest close since June 12, 2001.

Gold, base metals, and energy stocks provided much of the gain.

Bullion futures surged US$4.30 US to US$41 an ounce, pushing the TSX gold index up 1.6%.

Energy stocks also rose 1.6% as the price of oil and natural gas rose.

Petro-Canada pumped out a $1.70 gain to $60.20. Canadian Natural Resources gained $1.58 to $61.75.

Mining stocks surged 2.8% as base metals prices also rose. Nickel hit a new 14-year high, helping Inco to a gain of $2.73 to $49.15.

The the information technology and telecom groups both registered fractional losses. Nortel slipped 3¢ to $5.50.

Stock in Les Boutiques San Francisco fell almost 70% to 33¢ after it filed for creditor protection to allow it to finish its restructuring.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index slipped 0.62 points to 1,648.49.

In the New York, the major market gauges closed mixed. The blue chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 15.70 points to close at 1,0145.26. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 3 points to 1,921.30. The S&P 500 added 1.35 points to finish at 1,076.48.

The Canadian dollar rebounded slightly from its big loss Tuesday against the U.S. dollar. The loonie closed at US75.44¢, up 0.12 of a cent.