CANADA STOCKS-TSX rises as tech stocks gain after Nvidia's blockbuster earnings

By Avinash P and Pranav Kashyap

Nov 20 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index climbed for a second straight session on Thursday, boosted by Nvidia's blockbuster earnings that propelled tech stocks, while investors assessed the U.S. jobs report.

Canada's composite index .GSPTSE advanced 0.95% at 9:47 a.m. ET, headed for a second consecutive weekly gain led by technology shares that bounced back after a recent sell-off and mining shares that rose on rising commodity prices.

AI darling Nvidia NVDA.O eased bubble concerns with an upbeat fourth-quarter sales forecast and third-quarter revenue that smashed market expectations, calming investor jitters.

"The AI story is still intact and the bubble fear is another component of the market's wall of worry, and we still expect technology stocks to lead the market for the duration of this bull market," said Alexander Guiliano, chief investment officer, Resonate Wealth Partners.

The chipmaker was the driving force behind this year's tech and AI-fueled rally that sent U.S. markets to record highs.

TSX's technology sub-index .SPTTTK was up 2.5% and outperformed peers.

The U.S. jobs growth came in stronger than expected but the unemployment rate rose to 4.4%, suggesting the conditions in the market remained lackluster. Traders still expect the Fed will be skipping a rate cut in December with about a 70% chance.

"Jobs report was much stronger than expected and it's possible that the Federal Reserve may take more of a wait-and-see approach to rates in December, especially since there is still uncertainty over the economic data," Guiliano said.

Separately, the Bank of Canada on Wednesday called for a coordinated, economy-wide push to boost weak productivity, warning the issue is growing more urgent amid headwinds from U.S. trade policy.

In corporate news, Vizsla Silver VZLA.TO announced the pricing of $250 million convertible senior notes, sending its shares down 12.7%.