TSX positive as EnCana announces plan to split in two; N.Y. also positive

By Malcolm Morrison, The Canadian Press

TORONTO - The Toronto stock market moved higher Monday morning amid plans by EnCana Corp. to split into two separate companies while Research In Motion Ltd. (TSX: RIM.TO) announced a new variant of its BlackBerry and new software ventures.

New York markets also advanced as oil prices retreated from Friday's record high and investors took in some negative corporate news.

Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index gained 56 points to 14,577.19 after higher energy and mining stocks had sent the index up 1.8 per cent last week.

Shares in EnCana jumped $4.03 or about five per cent to $90.55 after it announced Sunday that it will split into one company focused on the oilsands and another, expected to keep the EnCana name, concentrating on natural gas.

Research In Motion shares ran ahead $5.16 to $138.51 as it advance its position in the smartphone market with its new BlackBerry Bold product, providing wider functions and ease of use to fight off Apple's iPhone and other competitors. The new device will be available this summer.

RIM and Microsoft Corp. also announced an agreement to provide Microsoft Windows Live services on BlackBerrys, and RIM joined with Thomson Reuters (TSX: TRI.TO) and Royal Bank (TSX: RY.TO) in a venture to fund BlackBerry software development.

The TSX Venture Exchange was ahead 9.16 points to 2,573.17. The Canadian dollar was unchanged at 99.44 cents US.

New York's Dow Jones industrial average was up 36.31 points to 12,782.19.

The Nasdaq composite index gained 5.64 points to 2,451.16 and the S&P 500 index was ahead 2.91 points to 1,391.19 after FedEx Corp. late Friday lowered its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings forecast, citing rising fuel costs.

MBIA on Monday posted a US$2.41-billion first-quarter loss, as the struggling bond insurer took heavy charges amid continued deterioration in the credit markets.

First-quarter losses at wireless carrier Sprint Nextel more than doubled to US$505 million, as it lost more than one million monthly subscribers.

The TSX energy sector gained in the wake of the EnCana announcement, although the June crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange stepped back $1.52 to US$124.44 a barrel as the U.S. dollar strengthened against the euro and yen.

Suncor Energy was off 48 cents to C$62.41.

Ivanhoe Energy Inc.'s (TSX: IE.TO) first-quarter net loss widened to US$8.5 million from a year-ago $6.5 million, but the company said preparations for commercial deployment of its heavy oil upgrading technology accelerated. Its shares were down eight cents to $2.05.

Compton Petroleum Corp.'s (TSX: CMT.TO) first-quarter profit plunged to $1.6 million from $13.7 million on big foreign exchange loss. Revenue moved down 15 per cent to $162.4 million and its shares were off six cents to $12.14.

Gold prices were lower as the June bullion contract in New York faded $4.60 to US$881.20 an ounce and the TSX gold sector moved down 0.8 per cent. Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX.TO) declined 38 cents to $39.12.

The financial sector moved up 0.8 per cent as Bank of Montreal (TSX: BMO.TO) climbed 57 cents to $49.57.

Home Capital Group Inc. (TSX: HCG.TO) said strong earnings in its mortgage and credit-card lending business led to a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit to $25.2 million and its shares climbed $1.07 to $39.37.

WestJet (TSX: WJA.TO) is following Air Canada and various American carriers in adding fuel surcharges. WestJet said its charges will boost ticket prices by between $20 and $45, amid "unrelenting and unprecedented increases in the cost of fuel over the last year." The carrier's shares were ahead 40 cents to $16.70.

Shares in miner Crystallex International (TSX: KRY.TO) shot up 14 cents or 21 per cent to 74 cents. Its shares have been battered since April 30 when it said it had been denied a permit for exploration work at its key Las Cristinas project in Venezuela.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.6 per cent.

London's FTSE 100 was up 16.1 points to 6,220.8, Germany's DAX 30 gained 34.58 points to 7,037.75 and the Paris CAC-40 advanced 29.52 points to 4,990.08.