Markets observed a moment of silence at 12:00 ET today, while the rest of the nation took three minutes of silence at 12:20 ET on what is a national day of mourning in both Canada and the United States.

At midday, the TSE 300 is down 229 points to 6,873, a 3.2% loss.

Brazil’s Bovespa is down more than 6%, and Argentina’s markets have lost a similar amount.

This fearful tone was set in Europe as traders proved reluctant to hold long positions over the weekend, particularly as the scope of possible U.S. retaliation remains uncertain.

Reports of defiance from Afghanistan has investors fearful of a prolonged conflict. France saw its CAC 40 drop 204 points to 3,909, about 5%. London’s FTSE dropped 188 points to 4,756, down 3.8%. Germany’s DAX fell hardest, surrendering 237 points to 4,155, a 5.4% slide.

Volume is lighter in Toronto today, at 91 million shares, and deeply negative. Selling volume is outpacing the buying almost five to one. Losers outnumber winners 13 to four, and new lows outnumber new highs by about 10 to one.

On a sector basis, gold is up about 5%, everything else is down. Financials are one of the weakest groups, off almost 5%. Industrials are down 6%, led by the airlines. Consumer stocks, conglomerates, media plays and paper stocks are all suffering heavy losses.

Following a worldwide move to sell airline stocks, Air Canada is down about 20% today. Bombardier has dropped 12%.

Royal Bank is leading the banks down, off 6%. CIBC and TD are posting heavy slides, as are all the financials. Manulife and Clarica are heading the selloff in insurance stocks.

Other losers today include CP, BCE, Talisman Energy, Ballard Power, Geac, ATI, Metro and Four Seasons.

The upside is in golds, and energy plays. Kinross is up 15%, TVX has gained 8%, Placer Dome is up 6%. Meridian Gold, Agnico Eagle, Franco Nevada and Barrick are all making sharp gains, too. Husky Energy and Suncor are leading gains among energy stocks.

In business news, Brookfield Properties continues to reiterate that a technical examination of its properties in lower Manhattan confirms that there is no structural damage to any of its properties, including One Liberty Plaza.

At the CDNX, markets are holding up better. The index is down just 1%, dropping 28 points to 2,865. Volume is light at 8 million shares, with techs leading the way down again. CardioComm Solutions is the top trader, up 10% to 11¢ on volume of 407,500 shares.