The Toronto Stock Exchange’s main index dropped more than 1% on Thursday, dragged lower by financial stocks and Research In Motion.

The S&P/TSX composite index fell 148.99 points, or 1.03%, to close at 14,292.14.

Seven of the 10 TSX main sectors fell.

The financials subgroup dropped 2.49%, as shares of all the major banks fell.

Canadian banks came under pressure after Goldman Sachs said there could be deep second-quarter losses and writedowns at U.S. giants Citigroup and Merrill Lynch.

In Toronto, CIBC fell $2.53, or 4.1%, to $58.58, while Bank of Montreal dropped $1.13, or 2.6%, to $42.57.

The tech sector dropped 4.82%, weighed down by BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion, which disappointed the market with the profit outlook it released late on Wednesday.

RIM shares fell a steep $18.86, or 13.1%, to $125.14.

The heavyweight energy group rose just 0.13% even as the price of oil jumped $5 US after the head of OPEC said prices could top US$150 a barrel this year.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude for August delivery rose US$5.09 to settle at US$139.64.

EnCana Corp. rose 41¢ to $90.16 and Petro-Canada lost 37¢ to $54.15.

The resource-laden materials rose 2.61% as a sharp rise in gold prices boosted gold miners. Bullion jumped US$32.80 to US$915.10 an ounce on the Nymex.

Kinross Gold surged $2.51 to $22.70 and Barrick Gold gained $2.65 to $43.46.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index bucked today’s selloff. It gained 18.98 points, or 0.75%, to finish at 2,553.37.

The Canadian dollar slipped 0.23¢ to close at US98.71¢.

In New York, U.S. tocks plunged with the Dow sliding to a 21-month low as Goldman Sachs urged investors to sell bank and automaker shares, escalating concern about the outlook for profits.

The Dow Jones industrial average slid 358.41 points, or 3.03%, to 11,453.42.

The S&P 500 Index tumbled 38.82 points, or 2.94%, to 1,283.16, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 79.89 points, or 3.33%, to close at 2,321.37. It was the Nasdaq’s worst one-day percentage drop since January.