North American stock markets were relatively flat midweek after a strong start to the month of November.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 63.72 points or 0.38 per cent at 16,745.64.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.07 points at 27,492.56. The S&P 500 index was up 2.16 points at 3,076.78, while the Nasdaq composite was down 24.05 points at 8,410.63.

The Canadian dollar traded for US75.88¢ compared with an average of US76.03¢ on Tuesday.

The December crude contract was down US86¢ at US$56.35 per barrel and the December natural gas contract was down US3.4¢ at US$2.83 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$9.40 at US$1,493.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was down US3.55¢ at US$2.66 a pound.