Investors bailed out of the equity markets in a big way during Monday’s session on the Canadian Markets. For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange plunged 4.41%, while the TSX Gold Index dropped 5.5% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, fell 3.59% with the decliners beating out the advancers by a 632 to 213 margin on a lower than normal 156 million shares traded.

The base metals continued on their quest for a floor on Friday. Copper slumped from the pre-dawn hours straight through to mid-morning, after which it traded sideways into a finish at $1.3877/lb., down more than 9 cents.

Coming off the second worst one-day sell off since 1987, the Canadian Markets continued to freefall during Tuesday trading with slumping commodity prices and political uncertainty sparking a renewed bout of uncertainty. For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange dropped 0.93%, while the TSX Gold Index bucked the down trend by adding 7.5% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, fell 1.08% with the declining issuers outpacing the advancers by a 423 to 309 margin on volume of 153 million shares traded.

The Canadian Markets started off the month of December on a sour note with the bears once again coming out of hibernation to maul the bulls. For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange plunged 9.32%, while the TSX Gold Index fell 13.8% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, dropped 3.55% with the declining issuers outpacing the advancers by a 543 to 253 margin on volume of 144 million shares traded.

Commodities are governed by supply and demand – more than any other variable. Just take a look at the precious metals bull market we’ve enjoyed since 2001.