CANADA STOCKS-Energy slump pushes TSX down 1.3 percent

(Adds portfolio manager comment, details; updates prices to
close)
* TSX ends down 172.24 points, or 1.26 percent, at 13,463.82
* All of the TSX's 10 main groups decline

By Alastair Sharp
TORONTO, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell
sharply on Wednesday, pushed lower by a slump in energy stocks
on cheaper oil and losses for miners as gold and copper prices
also declined.
Oil prices tumbled more than 4 percent and Canada's energy
sector followed it down 3.5 percent. The group has shed
one-fifth of its value so far this year.
"The lessons that we learned this year is that commodities
can be awfully nasty," said Barry Schwartz, a portfolio manager
at Baskin Financial Services.
Suncor Energy Inc SU.TO fell 2.7 percent to C$36.77 and
Canadian Natural Resources CNQ.TO lost 4.2 percent to C$30.99.
Potash Corp POT.TO fell 3.6 percent to C$25.70 and
Goldcorp Inc G.TO lost 2.7 percent to C$15.79.
Commodities prices were pressured by a mix of demand
worries, supply glut and by U.S. dollar strength after Federal
Reserve Chair Janet Yellen signaled a readiness to hike interest
rates and U.S. data indicated a strengthening labor market.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index
.GSPTSE ended down 172.24 points, or 1.26 percent, at
13,463.82. All 10 main groups fell.
The financial group, which accounts for 38 percent of the
index's weight, fell 0.3 percent as more of the country's major
banks reporting quarterly earnings
Royal Bank of Canada RY.TO was flat at C$76.87 after its
profit beat estimates as gains in retail banking and capital
markets more than offset bad loans in the oil and gas sector.

National Bank of Canada NA.TO slipped 0.5 percent to
C$43.91 after reporting higher profit and an increased dividend.

Bank of Nova Scotia shares BNS.TO fell 1.6 percent to
C$59.87 a day after the company reported higher quarterly profit
but weakness in its capital markets business and an increase in
bad energy loans.
"I'm very happy with the Canadian banks and their earnings,"
Baskin's Schwartz said. "I think they're fabulous results in a
really tough environment."
The Bank of Canada held interest rates steady but warned of
rising vulnerabilities in the household sector, where debt has
climbed as consumers take advantage of low borrowing costs.