- The biggest contributor to the TSX gain was Nutrien LTD with 7.82 net index points in the wake of its quarterly earnings late Tuesday. That helped boost materials sector <.GSPTTMT> as the top contributor with 13.76 net points. 

- Leading the index were Nevsun Resources Ltd, up 16.8 percent, IAMGOLD Corp, up 8.9 percent, and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc, higher by 8.9 percent.

- Lagging shares were Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corp, down 10.7 percent, WestJet Airlines Ltd , down 9.8 percent, and Seven Generations Energy Ltd, lower by 5.1 percent.

- On the TSX 125 issues advanced and 121 declined as a 1-to-1 ratio favored advancers. There were 7 new highs and 2 new lows, with total volume of 238.6 million shares.

- The most heavily traded shares by volume were Cenovus Energy Inc, Baytex Energy Corp and Aurora Cannabis Inc

- The TSX's energy group <.SPTTEN> rose 0.01 points, or 0.01 percent, while the financials sector <.SPTTFS> climbed 0.60 points, or 0.2 percent.

- West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 1.48 percent, or $1.05, to $69.68 a barrel [O/R]

- The TSX is off 2.3 percent for the year.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak)