North American stock markets fall in late-morning trading, loonie down

TORONTO -- North American stock markets had their worst day in months on growing concerns about the impact of the new coronavirus.

The S&P/TSX composite index posted a triple-digit decline, closing down 172.07 points or one per cent at 17,318.49.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 603.41 points or 2.1 per cent at 28,256.03. The S&P 500 index was down 58.14 points at 3,225.52, while the Nasdaq composite was down 148 points at 9,150.94.

The Canadian dollar traded for 75.57 cents US compared with an average of 75.66 cents US on Thursday.

The March crude contract was down 58 cents at US$51.56 per barrel and the March natural gas contract was up 1.2 cents at US$1.84 per mmBTU.

The April gold contract was down US$1.30 at US$1,587.90 an ounce and the March copper contract was down 0.7 of a cent at US$2.52 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2020.