Minutes from the Fed’s latest policy meeting suggested the central bank was not in any hurry to raise interest rates.

The market’s advance was, however, held back by weakness in the energy sector, which tumbled 2 percent on Wednesday and had the biggest negative influence.

The benchmark TSX firmed after hitting a 4-1/2-month low earlier in the session. It is down about 7 percent since hitting a record high last month.

"Investors need to accept that it's perfectly normal for the market to swing like this, both ways, same day sometimes," said Adrian Mastracci, portfolio manager at KCM Wealth Management.

"The volatility is not finished yet. It's going to be sticking around," he added. "This is not a market that is going to go down in a straight line, or go up in a straight line or stay in a straight line."

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> closed up 90.02 points, or 0.62 percent, at 14,666.47. Seven of the 10 main sectors on the index were higher.

Financials, the index's most heavily weighted sector, jumped 1 percent. Royal Bank of Canada (>> Royal Bank of Canada) gained 1.7 percent to C$80.99, and Bank of Montreal (>> Bank of Montreal) climbed 1.6 percent to C$82.67.

The gold-mining sector shot up 7 percent, buoyed by a gain in the price of bullion. Goldcorp Inc (>> Goldcorp Inc.) surged 8 percent to C$27.21, and Barrick Gold Corp (>> Barrick Gold Corp.) advanced 4.6 percent to C$15.94.

Shares of energy producers dropped 0.9 percent, with the U.S. crude oil price down 1.4 percent. Suncor Energy Inc (>> Suncor Energy Inc.) fell 0.8 percent to C$38.24, and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd (>> Canadian Natural Resources Limited) lost 0.6 percent to C$39.76.

(Editing by James Dalgleish and Meredith Mazzilli)

By John Tilak