North American equity markets fell sharply as oil prices touched another record high near $144 US a barrel on Wednesday.
The S&P/TSX composite index shed 432 points to close at 14,034.11 — the market's lowest close since April 30.
Stocks in Toronto were led down by a 7.5 per cent drop in the mining sector. The materials sector was down almost five per cent while industrials were off about four per cent, and the information technology group shaved 3.5 per cent. The financial sector fell about 2.2 per cent.
Units of Fording Canadian Coal Trust tumbled 16 per cent, or $15.80, to end at $81.70. A drop in coal prices of $20 a tonne, or about 10 per cent, was behind the nosedive.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average shed 166 points to reach 11,215.51. The Nasdaq composite index dropped almost 53 points, falling to 2,251.46. The broader S&P 500 index retreated 23.39 points, ending at 1,261.52.
Shares of General Motors lost 15 per cent, or $1.77 US, to end at $9.98 on the NYSE. Earlier, Merrill Lynch said the automaker needed to raise $15 billion US to shore up its finances and added that bankruptcy was "not impossible" if conditions in the auto sector don't improve.
In commodities trading, the price of oil reached a single trading day record of $143.91 US a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange before finishing at $143.57, up $2.60 from Tuesday.
