Global indicators were mixed for the Toronto stock market Monday, while financial markets in the United States are closed to mark Presidents Day.

In today’s economic news, Canadians have invested in foreign securities for 23 consecutive months, purchasing $5.6 billion in December, Statistics Canada reported. Fuelled by investment in foreign bonds, Canadian acquisitions of foreign securities reached a record $78.3 billion in 2006.

Meanwhile, non-residents reduced their holdings of Canadian securities by $3.3 billion in December, mostly due to sizable retirements of Canadian bonds.

Separately, StatsCan reported that wholesalers ended the year on a high note, with the automotive sector providing much of the impetus for the largest monthly gain in over two years.

Wholesale sales jumped 2.7% in December to $42.8 billion, following a 0.3% rise in November. December’s increase was the largest since March 2004.

The Canadian dollar opened at US85.81¢, down 0.17 of a cent.

Oil prices fell Monday. Light, sweet crude for March delivery lost 28¢ to US$59.13 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange mid-afternoon in Singapore.

European shares advanced Monday, with sentiment aided by gains in the mining sector.

The United Kingdom’s FTSE index rose 0.5% to 6,449, the French CAC-40 Index advanced 0.7% to 5,751, the German DAX Xetra index gained 0.5% to 6,994.

In Asia, Markets in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore South Korea and Malaysia were closed for Lunar New Year holiday.

In Tokyo, the benchmark Nikkei 225 index advanced 64.44 points, or 0.36%, to finish at 17,940.09 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange – its highest close since May 8, 2000.

On Friday, the Toronto Stock Exchange ended higher on Friday for a fourth straight session, getting a lift from the telecommunications and energy sectors.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 23.79 points, or 0.18%, at 13,311.95.

For the week, the benchmark index was up 1.7%.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index gained 26.44 points, or 0.86%, to close at 3,090.70.

In New York, markets ended little changed after a volatile trading day as February options contracts expired and investors closed positions early before a long holiday weekend.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 2.56 points, or 0.02 %, to end at 12,767.57, a record. The S&P 500 declined 1.27 points, or 0.09%, to finish at 1,455.54. The Nasdaq composite index slipped 0.79 of a point, or 0.03%, to close at 2,496.31.

For the week, the Dow climbed 1.5%, the S&P 500 rose 1.2% and the Nasdaq added 1.5%.