The Toronto stock market started lower on Monday as falling commodity prices put a weight on overall trading.

The S&P/TSX composite index moved back 33.50 points to 12,350.10. The TSX Venture Exchange fell 3.46 points to 1,342.26.

The Canadian dollar slid 0.32 of a cent to 102.10 cents US.

And both crude oil and gold moved lower, as questions about demand impacted prices. November crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange moved down $1.03 to US$91.86 a barrel.

The December bullion decreased $11.60 to US$1,766.40 an ounce. December copper was off six cents to US$3.73 a pound.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrials were off 39.51 points to 13,539.96. The Nasdaq composite index moved back 19.09 points to 3,160.87 and the S&P 500 index was 5.74 points lower to 1,454.41.

The shine has been wearing off what has been an optimistic month for stock markets, characterized by an enthusiastic climb that defined much of the first-half of September. Stock markets have been trading at levels not seen since late 2007, helped in particular by moves from central banks to provide stimulus.

The latest indicators, however, suggest the global economy is still slowing down and recovery will take time.