CANADA STOCKS-TSX advances on U.S. data, Ukraine relief

* TSX rises 20.99 points, or 0.15 percent, to 14,320.90

* Eight of 10 main index sectors advance

* Pembina Pipeline (Frankfurt: P5P.F - news) jumps after being added to S&P/TSX 60

index

By John Tilak

TORONTO, March 26 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index

climbed on Wednesday, led by gains in the energy and financial

sectors as bullish U.S. economic data and an easing of tensions

over Ukraine helped support sentiment.

Data showed a rebound in orders for long-lasting U.S.

manufactured goods in February, with shipments showing strength

after two straight months of declines.

Investors, who have been plagued in recent weeks by fears

the situation in Ukraine could spiral out of control, were

appreciating the calm after Russia and the West appeared to draw

a line in the crisis.

The Toronto market gained for a second straight session and

is up about 5 percent this year.

"The markets are fighting their fight. It's an arm wrestle

between earnings and worries, and earnings continue to win,"

said Barry Schwartz, vice president and portfolio manager at

Baskin Financial Services.

"We believe we are at the beginning stages of a multi-year

recovery in North America," he added. "There are a number of

reasonably priced Canadian companies across the board."

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index

was up 20.99 points, or 0.15 percent, at 14,320.90.

Eight of the 10 main sectors on the index were higher.

Financials, the index's most heavily weighted sector, rose

0.2 percent, with Royal Bank of Canada (Toronto: RY-PC.TO - news) advancing 0.4

percent to C$72.99.

Energy shares, which received a boost from higher U.S. crude

oil prices, climbed 0.3 percent. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd

rose 0.4 percent to C$41.89, and Enbridge Inc (Toronto: ENB.TO - news)

added 0.5 percent to C$50.03.

A decline in the materials sector, which includes mining

stocks, helped limit the index's gains. Goldcorp Inc (Toronto: G.TO - news) shed

2.5 percent to C$27.78.

Turquoise Hill dropped 2.9 percent, to C$3.71,

after technical problems hurt first-quarter production at the

Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine in Mongolia. Turquoise Hill owns

a majority interest in Oyu Tolgoi and is controlled by Rio Tinto (Xetra: 855018 - news)

.

In other corporate news, Pembina Pipeline jumped as

much as 4.6 percent, hitting a 52-week high, after being added

to the S&P/TSX 60 index late on Tuesday.

"There's no hype to Pembina Pipeline. It's a real company

that delivers the goods," said Schwartz, whose Baskin Financial

owns the stock. "What I care about is owning companies that

provide products and services that we cannot live without, and

Pembina Pipeline is one of them."

(Editing by Chris Reese)