Toronto stocks closed broadly lower Tuesday as investors moved to lock in profits, amid uncertainty over the timing of a possible federal election.

The S&P/TSX composite index lost 55.82 points, or 0.52%, to 10,628.90.

Volume on the senior exchange was 232 million shares.

Nine of the 10 TSX 10 main groups fell with telecom issues off 1.78%, and the consumer discretionary group down 0.8%.

Telus Corp. lost $1.38, or 2.85%, to $46.99 after Merrill Lynch cut its rating on the phone company.

Rogers Communications Inc. also dropped, closing off $1.44, or 3.07%, to $45.40.

The materials group fell 0.74%, as gold-mining issues fell for a second straight session on the back of weaker bullion prices.

Kinross Gold lost 16¢, or 1.95%, to $8.04, while Barrick Gold fell 45¢, or 1.47%, to $30.20, and Placer Dome shed 29¢, or 1.19%, to $24.05.

The utilities group was the only one on the positive side, with a 0.37% gain.

In economic news, Statistic Canada reported that manufacturers’ shipments fell 0.5% in September because of a decline in vehicle manufacturing. Excluding autos, shipments rose by 0.6%.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index slid 17.03 points, or 0.85%, to end at 1,996.75.

On Wall Street, U.S. stocks ended lower with the Dow Jones Industrial Average snapping a four-session winning streak, after mixed signals on inflation and a worrying sales outlook from Target Corp.

In U.S. economic news, retail sales fell 0.1 % in October, which bettered the 0.7% decline economists had expected. Excluding autos, retail sales rose 0.9% last month. Wholesale prices rose 0.7% in October after a 1.9% increase in September.

The Dow finished down 10.73 points, or 0.1% at 10,686.44.

The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 14.21 points, or 0.65%, to 2,186.74, while the S&P 500 Index dropped 4.70 points, or 0.39%, to 1,229.01.