Toronto shares boosted by banks, TransCanada

(Reuters) - Canada's main stock index rose on Thursday as gains in the financial sector and shares of TransCanada Corp offset a decline in natural resource companies.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended up 79.39 points, or 0.52 percent, at 15,407.66.

Investors were taking in a slew of Canadian corporate earnings, while global markets rose. [MKTS/GLOB]

TransCanada was the biggest lift on the index, climbing 5.0 percent to C$56.33 after it reported strong fourth-quarter profit and said it would go ahead with the expansion of its NGTL natural gas system.

The financials group also helped support the market, gaining 0.4 percent as Toronto-Dominion Bank rose 0.7 percent to C$72.81, while Brookfield Asset Management was up 2.2 percent at C$49.43.

Bombardier jumped 11.3 percent to C$3.66 following better-than-expected results and as Delta Air Lines said it would go ahead with plans to buy some Canadian-made CSeries jets after a U.S. trade ruling stopped the United States from imposing steep duties on the aircraft.

Canadian Tire Corp climbed 6.6 percent to C$174.48 after the retailer reported better-than-expected quarterly profit amid an early winter in some parts of the country.

On the downside, Barrick Gold Corp shed 3.0 percent to C$16.62 after the world's biggest gold producer, forecast an output drop over the next four years.

Barrick helped weigh on the materials sector, which retreated 0.4 percent.

Cenovus Energy dropped 5.3 percent to C$9.36 after the company said it was looking to sell assets in Western Canada's Deep Basin.

The stock weighed on the energy sector, which lost 0.9 percent.

The TSX posted 12 new 52-week highs and 10 new lows. Volume on the index was 248.75 million shares

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr in Ottawa; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Diane Craft)