North American stock markets plunge at the start of trading again

TORONTO -- North American stock markets plunged again in early trading as fears about the novel coronavirus outbreak continued to weigh on investors.

The S&P/TSX composite index was down 370.48 points at 16,183.51.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 717.86 points at 25,403.42. The S&P 500 index was down 81.51 points at 2,942.43, while the Nasdaq composite was down 215.38 points at 8,523.22.

The Canadian dollar traded for 74.58 cents US compared with an average of 74.54 cents US on Thursday.

The April crude contract was down US$1.76 at US$44.14 per barrel and the April natural gas contract was down 2.1 cents at US$1.751 per mmBTU.

The April gold contract was up US$17.30 at US$1,685.30 an ounce and the May copper contract was down 2.25 cents at US$2.5505 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 6, 2020