TSX rises 0.40 percent; caps off best week since February

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX rose 56.79 points, or 0.40 percent, to 14,222.00 to cap off a weekly gain of more than 2 percent, the best weekly performance since February. Leading the index were Maxar Technologies Ltd , up 15.2 percent, Birchcliff Energy Ltd , up 12.9 percent, and Aphria Inc , which rose 12.6 percent after it said a C$2.8 billion ($2.06 billion) all-stock hostile bid by Green Growth Brands Ltd's "significantly" undervalued the company. Lagging shares were Barrick Gold Corp , down 5.6 percent, First Majestic Silver Corp, down 3.0 percent, and First Quantum Minerals Ltd, lower by 2.7 percent. On the TSX 176 issues rose and 59 fell as a 3-to-1 ratio favored advancers. There were 2 new highs and no new lows, with total volume of 266.4 million shares. The most heavily traded shares by volume were Barrick Gold Corp , Aphria Inc and Aurora Cannabis Inc. The TSX's energy group rose 2.02 points, or 1.50 percent, while the financials sector climbed 1.16 points, or 0.43 percent. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 1.12 percent, or $0.5, to $45.11 a barrel. Brent crude rose 0.13 percent, or $0.07, to $52.23. [O/R] The TSX is off 12.3 percent for the year. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak)