Toronto stocks sank Tuesday, one day after breaking the 12,000-point plateau and setting an all-time record close, as commodity prices dropped and investors moved to lock in profits.

The S&P/TSX composite index fell 263.23, or 2.18%, to 11,817.30.

Volume on the senior exchange was 396 million shares.

Eight of the 10 TSX main sub-groups declined, with the energy sector off a whopping 4.67%.

The benchmark March contract fell 3% losing $2.02 to US$63.09 a barrel. The U.S. Department of Energy lowered its global oil demand estimate and it is believed U.S. inventory figures out tomorrow will show a rise in supplies.

EnCana Corp. fell 2.94%, or 5.37%, to $51.80.

Despite reporting record annual profits of $2 billion for 2005 with fourth-quarter profits of $669 million, Husky Energy Inc. fell $2.58, or 3.48%, to $71.48.

The materials sector declined 3.95%

The benchmark April contract for gold was down $19.50 at US$554.80 an ounce.

Bema Gold Corp. fell back 39¢, or 7.89%, to $4.55.

Consumer discretionary was down 0.09%.

Hudson’s Bay Co. announced it was selling its credit card and financial services arm to GE Money for net proceeds of $370 million. HBC shares rose 5¢, or 0.33%, to $15.06.

The Canadian dollar moved 0.53 of a cent lower to US86.69.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index index finished down 64.44, or 2.47%, to 2,542.05.

In New York, although the declines weren’t as severe as on Bay Street, stocks were lower as downward pressure on commodity prices, a warning from Toll Brothers that the real estate market might be beginning to cool and news from General Motors Corp. that it’s cutting its annual dividend in half led to a retreat.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 48.51 points, or 0.45% at 10,749.76, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 13.84 points, 0.61%, to 2,244.96, while the S&P 500 Index shed 10.24 points, or 0.81%, to 1,254.78.

Google’s shares slid 4.5% to US$367.92 on Nasdaq, making it the biggest weight on that index.