Canadian stocks continue to perform well in early afternoon trading on Friday, with the S&P/TSX Composite Index posting a moderate gain after closing lower in the four previous sessions. The market has benefited from strong gains among metal stocks.

The market has moved roughly sideways in recent trading, with the S&P/TSX Composite hovering near its best level of the day. After reaching a high of 12,242.08, the index is currently up 46.99 at 12,234.68.



Among metal stocks, gold stocks are posting particularly strong gains, with the Gold Index currently up 4.6 percent. With the gain, the index has more than offset the 4.3 percent loss that it posted on Thursday.

The strength in the gold sector comes as the price of the precious metal has moved sharply higher to reach its best intraday level in over 25 years. Gold for June delivery is currently up $19.70 at $656 an ounce.

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