Toronto stocks fell sharply in a broad-based selloff Friday as the fallout from U.S. credit losses continued to roil markets.

The S&P/TSX composite index plunged 258.77 points, or 1.83%, to end at 13,869.82.

For the week, the benchmark index was down 3.4%.

On Friday, the financial sector was down almost 2% after CIBC disclosed a $463 million writedown of collateralized debt obligations and residential mortgage-backed securities.

The bank also said the Q4 writedown will be more than offset by an after-tax gain of $381 million from the previously announced completion of Visa’s worldwide restructuring.

Shares in CIBC move 9¢ lower to $96.24.

Royal Bank lost $1.30 to $50.55 and National Bank fell $1.53 to $51.26.

The technology sector was down 2.2% with Research In Motion tumbling $10.34, or 8.83%, to $106.76.

The energy sector also moved 2% lower as the December crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 86¢ to US$96.32 a barrel. Petro-Canada fell $1.39 to $54.29.

The materials sector, home to resource shares, fell 1.2%.

Gold prices headed lower with the December bullion contract on the Nymex down $2.80 to US$834.70 an ounce.

Goldcorp shares fell 86¢ to $32.82 after a third-quarter profit of US$75.8 million, up from a year-ago $59.5 million, as sales rose 29%.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index shed 20.32 points, or 0.66%, to 3,048.54.

The Canadian dollar was down 0.77¢ to US$1.0607, around 4¢ below its high for the week.

In New York, stocks fell for a third day on Friday after Qualcomm’s disappointing outlook sparked selling in technology shares and helped push the Nasdaq down to its biggest weekly point loss since the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Adding to the negative tone, Fannie Mae, the largest source of mortgage financing in the United States, posted a third-quarter net loss that was double its loss from a year ago.

And Wachovia Corp., the fourth-largest U.S. bank, reported a potential US$1.7 billion loss on mortgage-related debt.

The Dow Jones industrial average finished down 223.55 points, or 1.69%, at 13,042.74. The S&P was down 21.07 points, or 1.43%, at 1,453.70. The Nasdaq composite index was down 68.06 points, or 2.52%, at 2,627.94.

For the week, the Nasdaq lost 6.5%, the Dow dropped 4.1% and the S&P 500 declined 3.7%.