Toronto stocks fell Friday as the price of oil retreated from highs reached earlier in the week.

The S&P TSX composite index finished down 96.34 points, or 0.79%, at 12,110.61.

Eight of the 10 TSX main groups finished lower.

The energy group dropped 1.41%, while the materials group slipped 0.84%.

Oil and gold prices both declined on Friday on geopolitical factors and profit-taking.

Crude oil prices fell 52¢ to US$66.63 a barrel after Iran said it would not cut oil supplies in a dispute over the country’s nuclear program.

Enterra Energy Trust shed $1.54, or 8.8%, to close at $15.90, and Talisman Energy Inc. fell $1.03 to $62.02. Petro-Canada gave up $1.16 to $55.38.

Gold fell as well, as commodity funds and speculators locked in profits from a recent rally in bullion, which sent prices to 25-year highs. Gold for June delivery retreat $5.10 to US$586.70 an ounce in New York Mercantile Exchange trading.

Teck Cominco Ltd. dropped $1.50 to $75.14 and Centerra Gold fell $1.11 to $38.58.

The Canadian dollar fell 0.54¢ to US85.62¢.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index gained 13.48 points, or 0.46%, to finish the week at 2,912.98.

U.S. stocks fell as the drop in crude oil prices weighed on energy shares, offsetting data showing tame U.S. inflation.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 40.58 points, or 0.36%, to end unofficially at 11,110.12. The S&P 500 was down 5.22 points, or 0.40%, at 1,295.03. The Nasdaq composite index was down 0.73 of a point, or 0.03%, at 2,340.09.

For the week, the Dow finished down 1.51%, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.62%. Only the Nasdaq ended the week higher, gaining 1.17%.

For the first quarter of 2006, the TSX outperformed U.S. markets. The 7.4% return of the TSX doubled the 3.7% rise in the Dow and beat the Nasdaq’s 6.1% return.