Canadian stocks lower as crude slips amid Brexit uncertainty

 Canada's main stock market in Toronto inched lower Tuesday as crude oil prices tumbled further as investors worried that Britain's exit from the European Union would slow the global economy.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index lost 39.30 point, or 0.28 percent, to close at 14,219.57 points. Six of the TSX index's eight main sub-sectors were lower.

Oil prices were down nearly 5 percent as a potential economic slowdown weighed on prospects of global demand amid the uncertainty surrounding the so-called Brexit.

The West Texas Intermediate for August delivery dropped 2.39 U.S. dollar to settle at 46.60 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for September delivery plunged 2.14 dollar to close at 47.96 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

Equities in Toronto fell on Tuesday as energy companies followed oil prices lower, with a return of global investor jitters prompting some gains for yield-paying telecom stocks and gold miners.

Telecom companies retreated, with the country's three largest operators among the most influential gainers as investors sought out relatively stable stocks offering decent dividend yields.

TELUS Corporation gained 1.87 percent to 42.93 Canadian dollars (32.98 U.S. dollars), BCE Inc. rose 0.87 percent to 61.73 Canadian dollars, and Rogers Communications Inc. advanced 1.14 percent to 53.10 Canadian dollars.

But the TSX index fell as the heavyweight energy group retreated 1.06 percent, as Baytex Energy Corp. dropped 4.17 percent to 7.35 Canadian dollars.

The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, also lost ground with a 2.56 percent decline.

Gran Colombia Gold Corp. gained jumped 11.54 percent to 0.145 Canadian dollar and Kinross Gold added 5.91 percent to 7.35 Canadian dollars, even as bullion slipped from a two-year high.

First Quantum Minerals fell 4.66 percent to 9.41 Canadian dollars, Teck Resources declined 2.42 percent to 17.32 Canadian dollars, and Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. lost 3.26 percent to 21.09 Canadian dollars.

South of the border, U.S government bond yields reached record lows as investors found refuge in the perceived safety of Treasuries and worries from Britain's vote to exit the EU.

Brexit worries also hit Britain's property market and drove the pound to a 31-year low.

Data from China showed that the country's services sector activity rose to an 11-month high in June, but a composite measure of activity including manufacturing fell to its lowest in four months.

The Canadian dollar traded lower at 0.7683 U.S. dollar, compared with Monday's closing rate of 0.7778 U.S. dollar.