Stocks ended lower on Monday, with the Canadian benchmark index in particular weighed down by declining commodity producers.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 12,197.88, down 22.71 points or 0.2 per cent. The broader S&P 500 closed at 1310.19, down 3.61 points or 0.3 per cent. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 13,892.73, down 146.66 points or 1 per cent.
Materials and energy stocks were particularly weak after crude oil fell below $104 (U.S.) a barrel and gold fell below $1,420 an ounce. Among Canadian energy producers, Suncor Energy Inc. fell 1.8 per cent and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. fell 2 per cent. Among materials stocks, Barrick Gold Corp. fell 1.5 per cent and Teck Resources Ltd. fell 2.2 per cent.
To make matters worse, uranium stocks were battered again after making some progress toward rebounding last week. Cameco Co. fell 4.2 per cent after reports that radioactive water might be leaking into the ocean from Japan's stricken nuclear plant.
Timber companies gained. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. rose 5.7 per cent and Canfor Corp. rose 3.1 per cent.
Among U.S. stocks, Home Depot Inc. slid 2.1 per cent, making it the worst performance among the 30 stocks within the Dow. Walt Disney Co. fell 1.1 per cent and Hewlett-Packard Co. fell 0.9 per cent. However, telecommunications stocks were strong, with AT&T Inc. rising 1.8 per cent and Verizon Communications Inc. rising 1.2 per cent.