Canadian stock market slides as Greece rejects debt bailout offers

Canada's main stock market in Toronto on Monday failed to resume its rally since last Tuesday, as Greeks rejected international creditors' debt bailout offers in a referendum held Sunday.

Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index lowered 88.82 points, or 0.6 percent, to 14,593.57 points, as losses were seen across the board, with resources shares leading the fall.

The trading sentiment was weighed after more than 61 percent of Greeks voted "no" in a Sunday referendum, rejecting proposals from international creditors that included pension cuts, tax increases and other measures, which may lead to a possible exit of Greece from the euro zone.

Financials, the most weighed sector, retreated 0.69 percent as most of the giant banks lost ground, with Royal Bank of Canada going down 0.44 percent to 76.37 Canadian dollars (about 60.36 U.S. dollars) and Toronto-Dominion Bank lower 0.67 percent to 53.23 Canadian dollars.

Meanwhile, the energy sector and the mining sector suffered the biggest decline in the TSX, down 2.13 percent and 2.24 percent, respectively, when the commodities prices, including crude oil and copper prices, were hammered down by Greece worries.

Canada's biggest oil and gas company Suncor Energy plunged 1.21 percent to 34.18 Canadian dollars, while the basic metals producer First Quantum Minerals Ltd. dived 3.3 percent to 15.84 Canadian dollars per share.

Other losers included Industrials, down 1.29 percent, and Telecom, down 0.7 percent.

Domestically, investors also focused on Business Outlook Survey, the latest quarterly report issued by Bank of Canada Monday, as the Canadian central bank highlighted that weak oil prices continue to significantly dampen economic perspectives in affected sectors and regions, while there are some encouraging signs, owing in part to strengthening U.S. demand.

Also, Western University based in Ontario province revealed Monday that its Ivey Purchasing Managers Index stood at 55.9 for June, compared to 62.3 for May, and 46.9 for June of last year.

The Index is an indicator which measures the month-to-month variation of the purchasing activity in the Canadian economy. A reading above 50 shows an expansion while a reading below the mark suggests contraction.

On the currency front, the Canadian dollar on Monday was traded lower at 0.7904 U.S. dollar, compared with 0.7962 U.S. dollar Friday.