(Updates throughout with market commentary, details, market
reaction)
* TSX down 329.13 points, or 2.44 percent, to 13,144.54
* All 10 of the TSX's main sectors were down
* Energy and financials down more than 3 percent
By Solarina Ho
TORONTO, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index was
severely battered on Monday, swept along by the global market
rout that saw a nearly 9-percent plunge in Chinese stocks and
sent commodity prices plunging.
A recent string of lackluster data out of China, one of the
world's biggest economies and commodities consumers, have
ignited worries the country will spur a global economic
slowdown.
Chinese stocks tanked on Monday when Beijing failed to
intervene over the weekend as some had hoped, triggering panic
selling around the globe. The CBOE Volatility Index, a key
measure of U.S. equity volatility, surged above the 50 mark for
the first time since the financial crisis in 2009. MKTS/GLOB
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 briefly went into correction
territory, and the Dow Jones industrial average lost more than
1,000 points at one point. .N
"Historically, there's usually a reversal day of some sort,
but I don't think you'll know until later today," said Paul
Hand, managing director at RBC Capital Markets.
"Maybe this is the big one in terms of the earthquake and
then there are lot of aftershocks that can go on for days and
weeks."
At 11:12 a.m. EDT (1512 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's
S&P/TSX composite index .GSPTSE fell 329.13 points, or 2.44
percent, to 13,144.54, well off the session lows.
At one point shortly after the open, the index suffered its
biggest intraday loss since the financial crisis in 2009,
falling 768.50 points, or 5.7 percent to 12,705.17.
All 10 of the index's key sectors were mired in red, though
most pared initial declines of 3 percent or more.
"The fundamentals of individual stocks aren't really
relevant right now," Hand said.
The hefty financials group, which also reports quarterly
results this week, sank more than 3.3 percent, at one point
touching its lowest level since October 2013.
Four of the top five weightiest losers were made up of
Canada's four biggest banks. Royal Bank of Canada RY.TO ,
Canada's largest bank, fell 3.0 percent to C$70.65.
Energy stocks continued their downward spiral, at one point
plummeting to the lowest level since December 2003. The sector
was trading down about 3.9 percent late morning.
Suncor Energy Inc SU.TO stumbled 2.9 percent to C$33.30.
Oil prices tumbled more than 6 percent on Chinese worries,
with U.S. crude hitting as low as $37.75 a barrel. It was down
about 4.8 percent at $38.52 late morning. O/R
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the TSX by
227 to 16, for a 14.19-to-1 ratio. The index posted 123 new
52-week lows.