TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto's main stock index pushed higher yesterday after two days of losses as a recovery in gold prices and evidence of a mending economy in the United States offset weak oil prices.

The index had a choppy morning session as investors continued to worry that China's moves to tighten monetary policy could cut demand for key commodities such as oil and metals.

Seven of the TSX's 10 main sectors advanced as the Federal Reserve said US economic activity remained at a low level as 2010 begun but was improving modestly and beginning to broaden out to include wider swaths of the country.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index closed up 33.38 points, or 0.28 percent, at 11,853.56.

No single sector dominated yesterday as a mixed bag of individual stocks were found among the key movers. Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion topped key advancers, up 2.5 percent at C$67.38, while oil producer EnCana rose 2.1 percent to C$36.32. Royal Bank of Canada rose 0.6 percent to C$55.70.

On the downside, pipeline company TransCanada fell 1.55 percent to C$34.97, while Canadian National Railway dropped 1.3 percent to C$56.91. Autoparts giant Magna International sagged 4.68 percent to C$59.47, while Suncor Energy fell 0.5 percent to C$37.68.

Gold prices rose in volatile trade as a lower US dollar prompted physical buying and short covering after the previous session's sharp losses.

That helped to lift some gold producers, including Iamgold, up 2.88 percent at C$17.49.

The price of oil settled below $80 a barrel, pressured by a US inventory report showing rises in crude and distillate fuel stocks, despite severe winter weather.

"I think we're seeing some weakness in some commodity-related areas but it's this mixed market that has lead to a small gain in the TSX," said Kate Warne, Canadian market strategist at Edward Jones in St. Louis, Missouri.