The resource sector inflicted further losses on the Toronto stock market as commodities continued to retreat amid worries about Chinese growth.

The S&P/TSX composite index dropped 51.05 points to 14,216.18. The commodity-sensitive Canadian dollar fell 0.28 of a cent to 89.79 cents US.

U.S. indexes also declined as the Dow Jones industrials lost 67.2 points to 16,284.05, the Nasdaq was down 22.49 points to 4,284.69 and the S&P 500 index dropped 9.24 points to 1,858.39.

The catalyst for the latest round of concerns about growth in the world's second-biggest economy was data released over the weekend showing a drop of 18 per cent in Chinese exports during February. That data had followed news at the end of last week that Chinese authorities had given the go ahead for the country's first credit default.

Copper has tumbled in recent days to the lowest level since mid-2010, having fallen 8.3 per cent over the last three sessions. It was down a penny to US$2.94 a pound while oil gave back $1.74 to US$98.29 a barrel.