By Adriano Marchese

Toronto stocks were sharply lower as the conflict against Iran in the Middle East entered its second week.

Oil surged on Monday around $100 a barrel as the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping corridor, remained blocked and other oil-producing nations in the region cut back their output.

The Canadian energy sector was the main gainer. Materials, consumer discretionary and health tech names led the broad-based decline.

Canada's S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 1% to 32743.22 and the blue-chip S&P/TSX 60 was down 0.8% to 1899.98.

Constellation Software profit fell in the fourth quarter due to a large noncash charge tied to the rising value of an investment, which offset higher revenue. Shares fell 0.6% to 2,944.83 Canadian dollars ($2,170.34).

Other market movers:

Mining stocks were lower to start the week as metals prices continued to roll back some of their recent gains.

Among the decliners were Silvercorp Metal, which fell 6.2%, and SSR Mining, down 6%. Lundin Mining declined 4.9% and Aya Gold & Silver fell 4.4%.

Write to Adriano Marchese at adriano.marchese@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 09, 2026 12:29 ET (16:29 GMT)

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