Higher gold prices pushed Canada’s main stock index higher, blunting the latest warnings in the U.S. of a potential recession.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 84.80 points at 16,183.59.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 120.93 points at 25,777.90. The S&P 500 index was down 9.22 points at 2,869.16, while the Nasdaq composite was down 26.79 points at 7,826.95.

The Canadian dollar traded for an average of US75.37¢, compared with US75.31¢ on Monday.

The October crude contract was up US$1.29 at US$54.93 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down US4.1¢ at US$2.19 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$14.60 at US$1,551.80 an ounce and the September copper contract was up US0.4¢ at US$2.55 a pound.