The TSX opened lower on light trading Monday, as markets in the United States were closed due to the Independence Day holiday.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index fell 34.27 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 11,161.79 just after opening.
In electronic trading, oil fell six cents U.S. to $72.08 U.S. a barrel. Oil prices fell 8.5 per cent last week as data out of the U.S. stoked fears of a double-dip recession.
Meanwhile, gold fell in electronic trading 70 cents U.S. to $1,207 U.S. an ounce. Floor trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange was closed for the holiday.
The Canadian dollar was trading at 94.04 cents U.S., down nine basis points.
"With U.S. markets closed for a holiday (Monday), markets around the world have been fairly directionless overnight and this it appears that quiet low volume trading may be the tone for the day," Colin Cieszynski of CMC Markets Canada wrote in a note. "Volatility may pick up as the week progresses on everyone is back tomorrow and focus starts to shift toward the upcoming earnings season."
Last week saw North American markets take a beating with the TSX down 4.4 per cent for the week, the Dow down 4.5 per cent and the Nasdaq down 5.9 per cent.
Markets were mostly higher overseas Monday. London's FTSE gained 8.52 points, or 0.18 per cent, to 4,846.61 at midday. In Frankfurt, Germany's DAX rose 13.36 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 5,847.51, and the Paris CAC added 1.84 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 3,350.21.
The Nikkei in Japan closed up 63.07 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 9,266.78, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 63.12 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 19,842.2.
On Friday, the S&P/TSX composite index closed down 98.87 points, or 0.87 per cent, to 11,196.06. The Dow was down 46.05 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 9,686.48, its seventh consecutive decline. The Nasdaq was lower by 9.57 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 2,091.79.
