The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday, Jan. 23, edition that Canadian big bank stocks have continued to rise since the Bank of Canada raised its key interest rate on Wednesday. The Globe's David Berman writes that bank stocks are benefiting from rising rates. This is becoming an important feature in today's market, when some dividend stocks are struggling. As rates rise, bond yields are also moving higher. The yield on the 10-year Government of Canada bond is now above 2.2 per cent, moving toward a four-year high and up from about 1.8 per cent just one month ago. Rising bond yields offer competition to dividends and are dragging on stock valuations in some rate-sensitive sectors. Utilities, real estate investment trusts and telecom stocks have been looking particularly vulnerable over the past six weeks: BCE is down more than 7 per cent, RioCan REIT is down about 3 per cent and Fortis is down almost 8 per cent. However, Canada's big banks have been immune to this trend. The sector hit record highs on Monday and is up 3.7 per cent over the past six weeks, suggesting that investors believe these dividend-paying stocks remain compelling investments when interest rates are rising.