North American stock markets decline as oil prices, loonie slide

TORONTO -- North American markets fell ahead of the weekend as the price of oil slipped.

The S&P/TSX composite index lost 52.98 points to 14,450.69.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 88.68 points to 18,123.80, the broader S&P 500 index dropped 8.10 points to 2,139.16, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 5.12 points to 5.244.57.

The Canadian dollar declined 0.31 of a U.S. cent to 75.68 cents US.

The November contract, which traded at a higher volume, slipped 90 cents to US$43.62 per barrel.

Elsewhere in commodities, the October natural gas contract rose 2.1 cents to US$2.948 per mmBtu, December gold was down US$7.80 to US$1,310.20 per ounce and December copper was relatively unchanged at US$2.16 per pound.