Toronto stocks rocketed higher Tuesday following Monday’s steep fall. The S&P/TSX composite index surged ahead 614.29 points, or 7.2%, to 9,151.63.

Today’s advance was the fourth-largest point gain ever for the benchmark index and matched its third biggest gain in terms percentage points.

The index rose about 300 points in the final 45 minutes.

The energy group was up 7.7% even as the December crude contract in New York shed 49¢ to US$62.73 a barrel.

EnCana Corp gained 8.7%.

The gold group added 13.5% even though gold closed down US$2.40 an ounce at US$739.30.

The beaten down financial services group rose by 6.95%.

Manulife Financial Corp. jumped 11%, and Royal Bank of Canada rose 5.9%.

Among individual stocks, Research In Motion Ltd. rose 12.2%.

Shares of Rogers Communications Inc. rose 10% to $32 after the company posted an 84% jump in quarterly profit, helped by sales of Apple’s iPhone.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index gained 7.95 points, or 0.98% to finish at 816.94.

The Canadian dollar ended its losing streak, adding 0.37 of a cent to close at US77.96¢.

In New York, U.S. stocks ended sharply higher as optimism that U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates tomorrow offset gloomy economic news.

The Fed is expected to cut interest rates by 25 and 50 basis points Wednesday at the end of its two-day policy meeting.

The Dow Jones industrial average shot up 889.35 points, or 10.88%, to end at 9,065.12. It was the Dow’s second biggest point gain in its history, the first being the 936.42 point gain on Oct. 13.

The S&P 500 surged 91.58 points, or 10.79%, to 940.50. The Nasdaq composite index jumped 143.57 points, or 9.53%, to close at 1,649.47.

In today’s economic news, the U.S. Conference Board released a report that showed consumer confidence at its lowest level since first measured in 1967.

Separately, data showed U.S. home prices fell at their sharpest-ever rate in August.

IE