Toronto stocks were up slightly Monday, as a big drop in the energy sector was offset by strength in the materials market and in the wider market overall.

The S&P/TSX composite index ticked ahead 5.54 points, or 0.05%, to 12,274.40.

Eight of the 10 TSX main sub-groups were up, but energy sank 1.94% on lower oil prices. The December delivery contract for light, sweet crude fell $2.39 to US$58.36 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Shell Canada was up 5¢, or 0.12, or $42.90.

The materials sector moved up 0.99%, with the gold sub-sector shooting forward 1.74%.

The December contract for gold rose $6.40 to US$607.40 an ounce.

Iamgold Corp. gained 7¢, or 0.74%, to $9.53.

The financials sector posted a 0.55% gain on the session. BMO Financial Group gained 59¢, or 0.86%, to $69.00.

The S&P/TSX Venture composite index gained 19.30 points, or 0.76%, to 2,559.73.

In New York, markets were mixed as investors balanced disappointing earnings news from Wal-Mart with lower energy prices.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 3.76 points to 12,086.50, the Nasdaq composite index rose 13.15 points to 2,363.77 while the S&P 500 ended essentially flat, rising 0.59 of a point to 1,377.93.