Toronto stocks rallied Wednesday, driven higher by advances in energy and mining issues.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 106.24 points, or 0.91%, at 11,794.58.

The energy group surged 2.31%, as U.S. crude futures rose 56¢ to settle at US$61.97 a barrel on renewed concerns over tensions in Nigeria.

Petro-Canada shares rose $2.29, or 4.4%, to $54.25.

The materials sector, home of metal and mining shares, rose 1.96%. Copper miner First Quantum Minerals jumped $2.81, or 7.8% to $39.00.

Overall, eight of the TSX index’s 10 main groups closed higher. The tech sector rose 1.86% with telecoms up 0.77%.

BMO Financial Group, which released its first quarter results early after partial results were released in error, saw its shares lose 72¢ to $68.25.

BMO earned $630 million, up from $602 million last year and raised its dividend to 53¢.

The Canadian dollar closed at a fresh 14-year high.

The loonie settled at US88.07¢, up 0.09 of a cent, after hitting an intraday peak of US88.22¢.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index added 29.16 points, or 1.15%, to finish at 2,560.97.

U.S. stocks rose as gains in network equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc. and other tech shares helped drive the Nasdaq Composite index up more than 1% in a rebound from Tuesday’s sharp losses.

Cisco jumped 4.1% to US$21.06 and pushed other tech shares higher.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index was up 33.25 points, or 1.46%, at 2,314.64. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 60.12 points, or 0.55%, at 11,053.53. The S&P 500 was up 10.58 points, or 0.83%, at 1,291.24.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported that personal spending shot up by 0.9% in January, the strongest gain in six months. Incomes rose by a solid 0.7%, the best showing since September.
In a separate report, the department said construction spending rose by a tiny 0.2% in January.
In another report, the Institute for Supply Management said its closely followed index of manufacturing activity stood at 56.7 in February.