TORONTO -- Canada's main stock index was up in late-morning trading, helped by gains in the influential energy and materials sectors.

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 49.89 points to 15,668.82, after 90 minutes of trading.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 56.88 points to 24,042.17. The S&P 500 index was down 5.99 points to 2,648.81 and the Nasdaq composite index was up 6.74 points to 7,137.44.

The Canadian dollar was trading at 77.82 cents US, up from an average value of 77.72 cents US on Tuesday.

The June crude contract was up 19 cents to US$67.44 per barrel and the June natural gas contract was down four cents to US$2.76 per mmBTU.

The June gold contract was down US$1.00 to US$1,305.80 an ounce and the July copper contract was up three cents to US$3.07 a pound.