Canada’s main stock index avoided slipping into the red as the price of gold hit a seven-year high.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 9.98 points at 17,858.34.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 165.89 points at 29,232.19. The S&P 500 index was down 9.87 points at 3,370.29, while the Nasdaq composite was up 1.56 points at 9,732.74.

The Canadian dollar traded for US75.43¢ compared with an average of US75.48¢ on Friday.

The April crude contract was down US3¢ at US$52.29 per barrel and the March natural gas contract was up US14.4¢ at US$1.98 per mmBTU.

The April gold contract was up US$17.20 at US$1,603.60 an ounce and the March copper contract was up 0.45 of a cent at US$2.60 a pound.