TSX drops on lower oil price, Potash earnings

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(Reuters)

By Frank Pingue

TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto's main stock index was lower on Thursday morning as a drop in oil prices weighed on energy shares, while Potash Corp was dumped after reporting a lower quarterly profit.

Shares of Suncor Energy , the biggest drag on the index, were down 1.9 percent at C$38.93, while fellow oil company Canadian Natural Resources dropped 1.5 percent to C$74.94.

Oil prices fell below $81 a barrel as a stronger U.S. dollar encouraged investors to lock in profits after oil hit a 12-month high on Wednesday.

Potash Corp of Saskatchewan shares were down 1.45 percent at C$105.69 after the world's largest fertilizer producer reported its third-quarter profit fell 80 percent.

At 10:10 a.m. EDT, the S&P/TSX composite index was down 70.69 points, or 0.62 percent, at 11,371.33. Early in the session the TSX had bounced on either side of the break-even line before heading lower.

The TSX remains about 52 percent above the five-year low it hit in March.

"The market is really just debating now whether the economy has really turned around," said Sal Masionis, stockbroker at Brant Securities.

($1=$1.05 Canadian)

(Reporting by Frank Pingue; editing by Peter Galloway)