TORONTO –
North American stock markets plunged midafternoon on geopolitical concerns following a report that the U.S. has approved arms shipments from Baltic NATO members to Ukraine to fend off a Russian incursion.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 146.98 points to 21,058.18.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 313.26 points at 34,715.39. The S&P 500 index was down 50.03 points at 4,482.73, while the Nasdaq composite was down 186.24 points at 14,154.02.
The Canadian dollar traded for 80.17 cents US compared with 80.05 cents US on Wednesday.
The March crude contract was down 25 cents at US$85.55 per barrel and the March natural gas contract was down 19.6 cents at US$3.65 per mmBTU.
The February gold contract was down 60 cents US at US$1,842.60 an ounce and the March copper contract was up 11.25 cents at US$4.58 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2022.
