Plunging commodity prices slammed energy and materials shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange Wednesday, sending the benchmark index down more than 550 points.

All 10 main groups on the TSX were down, pulling the S&P/TSX composite index down 558.92 points, or 5.71%, to close at 9,236.88.

Crude oil futures dropped 7.5%, to close at their lowest level in more than 16 months on worries of slowing demand. Crude for December delivery dropped US$5.43 to close at US$66.75 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Softer oil prices pushed down the TSX energy group a sharp 9.11%. Among Canadian oil companies feeling the pain were Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., down 11.43% to $49.26 and Petro-Canada, down 10.12% to $25.41. In addition, Imperial Oil shares fell 8.16% to $36.49.

Weaker oil prices helped to push the Canadian dollar down more than two and a half cents, to close at US79.70¢.

The day wasn’t any better for the materials group, which fell 11.1% after gold futures tumbled to their lowest level in a year. Gold for December delivery fell US$32.80 to US$735.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The sub-gold index fell 14.46%.

Shares of Agnico Eagle Mines were slammed with a drop of almost 25%, down $10.43 to close at $31.75 and Barrick Gold Corp. shares slid 5.46% to close at $27.18. Also down sharply were shares of First Quantum Minerals Ltd., which fell16.07% to finish at $21.41.

The financials group fell 4.11%, led by a 6.59% drop for Bank of Nova Scotia shares, which closed at $41.10, and a 5.79% drop for CIBC shares, which finished at $54.03.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture index plunged 68.76 points, or 7.09%, to close at 900.63.

Weakness in commodity prices hit stock markets in the United States with a similar selloff.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 514.45 points, or 5.7%, to end at 8,519.21. The S&P 500 index fell 58.27 points, or 6.1%, to 896.78 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 80.93 points, or 4.77% to finish the day at 1,615.75.

IE