The Dow Jones composite index smashed through the psychologically significant 11,000-point plateau for the first time in four-and-a-half years, while in Toronto, stocks were down on a weak day in the energy sector.

The S&P/TSX composite index fell 55.25, or 0.48%, to 11.565.21, its first losing session of 2006. Volume was 350 million shares.

Seven of the 10 TSX groups ended lower, with the energy group off 0.81%.

Light, sweet crude for February
delivery ended down 71¢ at US$63.50 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Petro-Canada lost 68¢, or 1.39%, to $48.16.

Mining firm Teck Cominco Ltd. and gas company UTS Energy Corp. announced they would pay $6.1 million to jointly lease an oilsands property in Northern Alberta. Teck Cominco gained $1.68, or 2.55%, to $67.65, while UTS fell 14¢, or 2.95%, to $4.61.
The financials sector was down 0.69%. The Bank of Nova Scotia lost 40¢, or 0.86%, to $46.05.

The materials group gained 0.74%. Gold futures gained $9.30 to US$550.60 an ounce, its highest level in almost a quarter century.

Bema Gold Corp. gained 17¢, or 4.29%, to $4.13.

In other corporate news, Rogers Communications Inc. said wireless phone subscriber growth slowed in the fourth-quarter, down 17.7% on an annualized basis. Rogers lost $1.74, or 3.37%, to $49.95.

Fertilizer company Agrium Inc. increased its bid for U.S. distributor Royster-Clark Ltd. to $357.5 million, sweetening a previous offer. Agrium shares gained 48¢, or 1.81%, to $27.04, while Royster-Clark gained 62¢, or 5.88%, to $11.16.

Three major paper producers have been fined a total of $37.5 million for price-fixing in sales of carbonless paper. Cascades Fine Papers Group Inc., Domtar Inc. and Unisource Canada Inc. each pleaded guilty in Ontario Superior Court in Toronto to two counts of conspiring to lessen competition. Cascades fell 8¢, or 0.77%, to $10.27, while Domtar fell a 1¢, or 0.15%, to $6.85.

The Canadian dollar inched down 0.20 of a cent to US85.62¢.

The S&P/TSX Venture Exchange index finished up 5.08, or 0.22%, to 2,312.48.

On Wall Street, the Dow closed up 52.59 points to 11,011.90, its highest close since June 2001, boosted by a strong day for General Motors and the anticipated end of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s current policy of rate hikes.

The Dow has ended higher in each of the five sessions of 2006.

The Nasdaq composite index finished up 13.07 points to settle at 2,318, hitting a nearly five-year high, while the S&P 500 advanced 4.7 points to 1,290.15.