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Canadian stocks slumped a fifth day on Thursday joining a sell-off in markets around the world amid waning confidence central banks can support the global economy, as commodities prices fall and growth stalls.

The Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index fell 98.35 points, or 0.81 per cent, to 12,087.37 in Toronto, extending losses after slumping 4.6 per cent in the past four days. Canada's benchmark equity gauge remains the second best-performing developed market in the world in 2016 with a decline of 7 per cent behind only New Zealand, after being among the worst in the past year.

"Our outlook call has been to be ready for anything and this is what we're getting now," said Sadiq Adatia, chief investment officer at Sun Life Global Investments in Toronto. His firm manages about $12.3-billion. "We need to get to a stage where there's some more pain, weed out the people who are very bearish and then get back to the fundamentals of the markets. We don't see this as a buying opportunity yet in equities and we have a risk-off trade if anything."

A nascent rally in Canada's equity benchmark in recent weeks has dissipated as global stocks tumbled amid diminishing returns from central bank actions and New York crude resumed its downward slide below $30 a barrel. The S&P/TSX slid into a bear market last month as crude prices collapsed due to a global supply glut.

The MSCI All-Country World Index of developed and developing markets is poised to enter a bear market from the most recent May 2015 high. U.S. equities extended losses as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's interest rate comments Wednesday failed to inspire lasting gains. The latest central bank moves this week follow the Bank of Japan's surprise shift to negative interest rates and the European Central Bank's signal it will deploy new stimulus next month.

"Everything is off today," said Greg Taylor, fund manager at Aurion Capital Management in Toronto. His firm manages about $7.2-billion. "You have got the fear of what's going on in the global market. Everyone is looking at negative rates in Europe and Japan, and trying to figure out what that means to the banking system."

Financials and health-care stocks contributed the biggest declines to the S&P/TSX on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank, the nation's largest lenders, each fell at least 1.4 per cent. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. lost 2.8 per cent.

Manulife Financial Corp., the nation's largest life insurer, sank 8.5 per cent for the biggest decline in more than four years after profit slumped in the fourth quarter due to the company's energy-related investments.

Raw-material shares jumped 3.5 per cent as gold producers surged. Barrick Gold Corp. and Goldcorp Inc. rallied at least 3 per cent. Gold prices jumped as investors sought a haven investment against the sell-off in stocks.

Cenovus Energy Inc. rose 3.2 per cent after the energy producer slashed its dividend by 69 per cent and said it will cut more jobs and further reduce its 2016 spending in an effort to retain cash amid a slide in crude and natural gas prices.

Global equities teetered on the precipice of a bear market, as U.S. shares staged an afternoon comeback to trim losses that surpassed 2 per cent amid growing concern that central banks won't be able to boost growth. Oil pared loss after falling to the lowest level in 12 years, while bonds rallied.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 1.2 per cent in New York, as losses that sent Europe's benchmark to the lowest level since 2013 combined to drop the MSCI All-Country World Index 20 per cent from a record. The global gauge closes at 4:15 p.m. in New York.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 255.17 points, or 1.6 per cent, to 15,659.57, as Boeing's plunge knocked 54 points off the index.

Investors ignored a second day of testimony from Janet Yellen, whose signal that the Federal Reserve won't rush to raise rates in the face of market turmoil failed to stem a sell-off in risk assets from bank shares to crude oil and emerging-market currencies. The yen leaped to its highest in more than a year. Major sovereign bond markets rallied, pushing 10-year Treasury yields toward 1.6 per cent. Gold rose beyond $1,200 an ounce.

Signals by central banks from Europe to Japan that additional stimulus is at the ready are failing to ease investor concern that global growth will keep slowing. Citigroup's Economic Surprise Index already indicates data in Group of 10 economies are falling short of estimates by the most since April 2013, and a sell-off in crude oil and weakening credit markets are exacerbating the malaise. Ms. Yellen suggested that the central bank might delay, but not abandon, planned interest-rate increases in response to recent turmoil in financial markets.

"Central bank policies and the uncertainty around their effectiveness is the big macro concern right now," said Leo Grohowski, who helps manage more than $184 billion in client assets as chief investment officer of BNY Mellon Wealth Management in New York. "There's a large disconnect right now between what the Fed might do and what they're saying and what the market is expecting. There's a lot of Fed uncertainty back on the table reminiscent of late last summer."

The Nasdaq 100 Index erased a loss of 1.6 per cent, while the S&P 500 cut a loss to less than 1 per cent around 2:45 p.m., when the broader index dipped to 1,810.10, breaching a level that halted a sell-off on Jan. 20. Crude pared its decline at the same time, as the Wall Street Journal reported OPEC members may consider cooperating to curb output. Oil rose briefly above $27 in New York after touching $26.13, the lowest level in 12 years.

"We got to about that 1,812 level and coincidentally that OPEC headline crossed around the same time. It could be a combination of this headline with the technicals," said Walter Todd, who oversees about $1.1 billion as chief investment officer for Greenwood Capital Associates LLC in South Carolina. "That's a level of prior support that we hit in October 2014. People are searching for support levels going back to prior lows."

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index sank 2.5 per cent, heading for the biggest decline in three weeks, with energy producers leading losses. As trading resumed in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 3.9 per cent, for its worst start to a lunar new year since 1994. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland companies slumped 4.9 per cent to its lowest since March 2009. Markets remained closed in mainland China, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Oil tumbled to lowest level in more than 12 years as crude stockpiles at the delivery point for New York futures expanded to a record.

West Texas Intermediate futures dropped to $26.13 a barrel, breaking below the $26.19 low from January to reach the lowest since May 2003. Supplies at Cushing, Okla., the biggest U.S. oil-storage hub, rose by 523,000 barrels to 64.7 million last week, according to government data. The site is considered full at 73 million barrels. The price difference between front-month WTI delivery and a month later was near the widest in five years.

"This is a hangover from yesterday's Cushing data," said Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA in New York. "Global equities, currencies and bonds are being taken as negative demand indicators. We're set to soon break the lows made last month and then $25 will be the big target."

Oil is down about 29 percent this year on speculation a global glut will persist as Iranian exports increase after the removal of sanctions and U.S. crude inventories remain swollen. U.S. stockpiles are more than 130 million barrels above the five-year average, even after dropping by 754,000 barrels, according to Energy Information Administration data.

WTI for March delivery dropped $1.24, or 4.5 per cent, to settle at $26.21 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Total volume traded was 88 per cent higher than the 100-day average. The March-April spread widened to $2.62 a barrel, widest gap for the front two contracts since 2011.

Brent for April settlement declined 88 cents to $29.96 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.

"The Brent-WTI spread is widening again, which has me wondering if we are getting close to seeing a rise in exports," said Bill O'Grady, chief market strategist at Confluence Investment Management in St. Louis, which oversees $3.6-billion in assets. "It would be good for WTI, not so for Brent."

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