By Leah Schnurr
Reuters
Friday, October 19, 2007

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TORONTO (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's main index was more than 200 points lower at mid-afternoon on Friday as falls in the resource and financials sectors triggered declines across the board.

Adrian Mastracci, fee-only portfolio manager at KCM Wealth Management in Vancouver, says, "I think the wall of worry is still alive and well."

Profit-taking after two sessions of gains and nervousness over the impact of the credit squeeze on global economies had spurred a more than 300-point fall in the key TSX index earlier in the day.

The energy sector suffered heavily as oil prices came off record highs of more than $90 a barrel, falling to $88.79, providing stock investors a reason to take profits after a seven-day advance.

Suncor Energy was down C$1.90, or 1.8 percent, to C$101.50, while Petro Canada fell 84 Canadian cents, or 1.6 percent, to C$52.81

The resource-laden materials group was also hurt by profit-taking as the price of gold fell to $762.30 an ounce after touching a 28-year high of $770.

Barrick Gold fell C$1.06, or 2.6 percent, to C$39.94, and Centerra Gold dropped 16 Canadian cents, or 1.3 percent, to C$11.94.

Economic worries spilled over from markets south of the border after Caterpillar Inc. warned the housing turndown is spreading to other areas of the U.S. economy.

"I think the wall of worry is still alive and well," said Adrian Mastracci, portfolio manager and president at KCM Wealth Management Inc., in Vancouver, British Columbia.

"Economic confidence is still quite fragile and today investors are locking in some of the profits," he added.

The key S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.99 points, or 1.67 percent, at 14,092.04 in the afternoon. All of the TSX index's 10 main groups were down.

The drop came on the 20th anniversary of "Black Monday," October 19, 1987, when the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 22.6 percent, and the key Toronto index fell 11.1 percent.

Financials, which have fallen in three of the past five sessions on worries over weak results from U.S. banks, continued their decline, down 1.2 percent, after Wachovia Corp posted a 10 percent drop in third-quarter profit.

Bank of Montreal fell 98 Canadian cents, or 1.6 percent, to C$61.20 and Bank of Nova Scotia was down 59 Canadian cents, or 1.2 percent, to C$50.86.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals was the biggest decliner by weight, diving 34 percent after the pharmaceutical company cut its 2007 outlook. Angiotech was down C$2.53 to C$4.82.

($1=$0.96 Canadian)

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