Canada’s main stock index ended lower to cap one of its best months and partially recover the steep declines of March.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 447.37 points or nearly 3% at 14,780.74.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 288.14 points at 24,345.72. The S&P 500 index was down 27.08 points at 2,912.43, while the Nasdaq composite was down 25.16 points at 8,889.55.

The Canadian dollar traded for US71.89¢ compared with an average of US71.83¢ on Wednesday.

The June crude contract was up US$3.78 or 25% at US$18.84 per barrel and the June natural gas contract was up eight cents at US$1.95 per mmBTU.

The June gold contract was down US$19.20 at US$1,694.20 an ounce and the July copper contract was down 2.65 cents at US$2.34 a pound.