TORONTO (Bloomberg) - Canadian stocks fell as oil prices slid below $44 a barrel and Prime Minister Stephen Harper won a suspension of Parliament, delaying an opposition bid to bring down his government and hasten an economic stimulus package.

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. and Nexen Inc. paced a decline among energy producers. BCE Inc. surged on speculation that private-equity firms whose takeover of the company may have failed last week will instead buy a stake in the phone company.

The Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index slid 239.14, or 2.9 percent, to 8,057.82 in Toronto. The S&P/TSX, which gets three-quarters of its value from energy, raw-materials and finance shares, has declined 42 percent in 2008, poised for its worst annual drop, after commodity prices slid from records and global credit losses approached $1 trillion.

"The truth is that there's nothing the government of Canada can do to stop the world financial crisis," said David Baskin, president of Baskin Financial Services in Toronto, which manages about C$350 million. "Who are we kidding? We're a bit player. We're at the mercy of the commodity markets, which we can't influence."

Mr. Harper, who refused to grant the opposition a so-called confidence vote, which could oust the government, said today that Governor General Michaelle Jean agreed to his request to close Parliament for seven weeks. Upon parliament's return, on January 27, his administration will present a budget that includes "stimulus" for the ailing economy, Mr. Harper said.

The opposition Liberals and the New Democratic Party agreed on December 1 to form a coalition, bring a vote of confidence against the government and accelerate a stimulus package for the economy, which is forecast to slip into recession in the fourth quarter. The separatist Bloc Quebecois would not be part of the government though it agreed to help it pass any legislation deemed matters of confidence.

Canadian Natural, the country's second-biggest natural-gas producer, fell 13 percent to C$41. Larger rival EnCana Corp. retreated 5.8 percent to C$49.82. Suncor Energy Inc., the second-biggest oil-sands producer in the world, fell 7.3 percent to C$21.58.

Nexen lost 12 percent to C$19. The co-owner of the Long Lake oilsands mine in Alberta and the Buzzard field in the North Sea slid for a second day after a takeover bid from Total SA of France failed to materialise. The stock surged last week and on Dec. 2 on Financial Times reports that Total will make an offer.