Stocks dipped at the start of trading on Monday, hit by concerns about high oil prices and a failure among the Group of 20 nations to boost the firepower of the International Monetary Fund in dealing with Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 87 points or 0.7 per cent, to 12,896. The broader S&P 500 fell 9 points or 0.7 per cent, to 1,357. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index fell 86 points or 0.7 per cent, to 12,640.
The downturn was widespread, hitting all but one stock within the 30-member Dow. Walt Disney Co. rose 0.2 per cent, but Bank of America Corp. fell 2.3 per cent, Hewlett-Packard Co. fell 1.5 per cent and Alcoa Inc. fell 1.3 per cent.
Despite concerns about high oil prices cutting into consumer spending and lifting transportation costs, oil producers – and oil itself – were among Monday’s casualties. Suncor Energy Inc. SU-T fell 1.5 per cent after oil fell to $108.67 (U.S.) a barrel, down $1.10. Last week, oil rose to its highest level since last May.
Big gold producers were relatively steady, even though the price of gold also retreated slightly, to $1,769 an ounce. Barrick Gold Corp. ABX-T was flat and Goldcorp Inc. G-T fell just 0.1 per cent.
