TORONTO (Bloomberg) — Canada’s main stock index rose to a record, led by Canadian National Railway Company, as a stronger-than-expected US jobs report allayed concern that demand for Canadian exports will slow.Canadian National paced gains among industrial companies, which are sensitive to the economy, after Warren Buffett’s investment company increased its stake in Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. Shares of materials producers such as Teck Cominco rose as copper prices climbed a five-month high.

“The jobs report is helping sentiment,” said Paul Hand, managing director, equity trading, at RBC Capital Markets in Toronto. Buffett “is an astute investor, who looks for value,” and “copper is better, so materials are holding up.”

The Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index gained 57.31, or 0.4 percent, to 13,482.33 in Toronto. It climbed past its previous record on April 4, when materials companies led the benchmark higher, on soaring prices for some metals. The US takes in excess of 80 percent of the country’s exports. More than half of the country’s exports are commodities.

Canadian markets were shut for an Easter holiday on April 6.

The US Labor Department said on April 6 that 180,000 new jobs were created in March and the unemployment rate fell. The increase in March payrolls followed a 113,000 gain in February. Economists predicted 130,000 jobs would be added last month, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. The jobless rate fell to 4.4 percent, matching a five-year low.

Railroads

Canadian National Railway, the nation’s biggest railroad, added C$2.68, or 5.3 percent, to C$53.58 and contributed the most to the S&P/TSX’s advance. It was Canadian National’s best one-day gain since July 2005. Smaller rival, Canadian Pacific Railway, climbed C$2.01 to C$66.10.

Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway bought 1.6 million shares of Burlington Northern, the second-largest US railroad, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The purchase brought the Omaha, Nebraska-based investment firm’s stake as of April 5 to 39 million shares valued at more than $3.23 billion, making it the second-largest shareholder of Burlington Northern.

Buffett, the world’s second-richest man, today told CNBC broadcast that he bought stakes in two other major North American railroads. He declined to name the companies.