(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks moved lower at the opening bell Wednesday morning in New York, paring their huge gains from the previous session as the euphoria over coordinated efforts to end the credit crisis gave way to recession fears.

With significant weakness emerging in the heavily weighted energy sector. The S&P/TSX Composite Index has dropped 309 points to 9,646.12, moving back toward Friday’s nearly 4-year closing low.

Bay Street played catch-up with other equities markets on Tuesday as traders returned to their desks from the Thanksgiving holiday to find that global stocks skyrocketed on Monday after seeing historic losses the previous week.

Investors initially cheered plans for government bank interventions in the US and across Europe, but with credit markets still in a state of severe distress, Canadian stocks may test Friday’s lows before any real recovery takes hold.

Energy stocks are down 7 percent, halving yesterday’s advance. Crude oil plunged again on Wednesday morning as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cut its world demand forecast. Light sweet crude for November delivery moved to $76.13, down $2.50 on the session. Earlier, oil hit as low as $74.97, dropping below $75 for the first time in more than a year.

EnCana (ECA.TO) shares are down 8 percent after announcing it will delay the timing of a shareholder vote for its proposed split into two independent energy companies. The vote was originally planned for December and now delayed until such time as the financial markets stabilizes.

In the industrial sector, railroads are taking a beating. Canadian Pacific (CP.TO) is down 8.7 percent, while CN Rail (CNR.TO) is off 5.5 percent.

Tech stocks are holding off relatively well after bellwether Intel (INTC) beat quarterly expectations on Tuesday. Research in Motion (RIM.TO) shares are up 1.5 percent.

Across the border in the US, a number of key economic reports showed the world’s biggest economy may be on the verge of a major slowdown. US retail sales fell by more than expected in the month of September, according to a report released by the Department of Commerce on Wednesday, with the decrease in sales partly due to a substantial drop in auto sales.

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Posted in Categories: Canada, Eurozone, Releases, Stocks, USA.

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