Toronto stocks fell more than 200 points amid a broad-based decline, as investors found little inspiration in the latest batch of earnings reports. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 205.59 points, or 3.23%, at 6,161.08.

All of the TSX’s 10 subindices ended lower, led down by a 3% dive in information technology stocks and 2.4% drop in the financial index.

Technology stocks fell after Lucent Technologies posted its ninth straight quarterly loss and said it would cut more jobs because the telecoms spending slowdown has not relented.

Shares of Nortel Networks ended the session down 7¢ at $1.72, while electronics manufacturer Celestica shed $1.80 to $30.70.

Gold stocks lost 9% and were weighing heavily on the market as the U.S. dollar strengthened and made the metal less attractive for overseas buyers.

Shares of Barrick Gold closed down $2.36at $22.85 a share, while Placer Dome slipped $1.40 to $14.18.

The materials sector, home to the country’s biggest base metals and minerals companies, closed down 6% after some of the group heavyweights posted weaker quarterly profits.

Shares of Inco fell $1.30 to $26.40 after the western world’s biggest nickel producer said a writedown on its Voisey’s Bay property resulted in a massive second-quarter loss.

Falconbridge shares dipped 23¢, or 1.4%, to $16 as the company reported a slip in second-quarter earnings.

Market momentum in Toronto was negative as 840 issues declined and 287 advanced on a heavy volume of 209 million shares worth.

The junior TSX Venture Exchange dropped 41.44, or 3.8%t, at 1,047.05.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 88.2 points to 7,702.3 after sinking 234 points Monday.

The Nasdaq composite index declined 53.66 points to 1,229.99, and the S&P 500 was off 22.15 to 797.7. Both indices are back to early 1997 levels.

The Canadian dollar to fell almost another full cent Tuesday as it suffered one of its worst two-day drops in history. The loonie fell 0.82¢ to close at US63.1 cents. Tuesday’s slide comes on the heels of one of its biggest daily drops in history, 1.04¢s on Monday.