The main stock index in Canada declined in late morning trading on Wednesday, affected by losses in technology and financial stocks, while U.S. stock markets also fell.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell by 51.75 points to 21165.78.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 37.60 points to 38526.20 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped by 4.08 points to 4971.43 points, while the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 68.37 points to 15562.41 points.

The Canadian dollar traded at 74.02 U.S. cents compared to 73.98 U.S. cents on Tuesday.

The April crude oil contract rose by 48 cents to reach 77.52 U.S. dollars per barrel, and the April natural gas contract rose by 19 cents to 1.84 U.S. dollars per million British thermal units.

The April gold contract fell by 5.20 U.S. dollars to reach 2034.60 U.S. dollars per ounce, and the March copper contract rose by one cent to 3.87 U.S. dollars per pound.