Trading volume has finally picked up today, but markets are still having trouble finding any real direction.

At midday, the TSE 300 is down 20 points to 7,538.

Volume is about average at 72 million shares, with selling action outrunning buying seven to five. Losers outnumber winners 10 to seven.

On a sector basis, industrials are leading the way lower. Technology stocks, both hardware and software, are down.

The weakest TSE group is oil services, down almost 3% again today. Conglomerates and consumer stocks are weak, too. Against this tide of selling, the golds are enjoying a big bounce, up 4.5%. Other miners, transports and merchandisers are up, too.

Nortel Networks is leading the techs down again today, as earnings warnings and profit fears grip the sector. It has lost another 2% on 6.4 million shares. A few other techs are along for the ride, including Telesystem International Wireless, Microcell, Celestica and GSI Lumonics.

But there are also notable losers among the blue chips, such as Bombardier, CIT, CanWest Global, CHC and Dundee Bancorp. Bank of Nova Scotia is also down notably, as fears of an Argentine credit default begin to build.

The upside is all about gold today, a sure sign that the bulls are short of good ideas. Big gainers include Meridian Gold, Barrick, Placer Dome and Franco-Nevada. Other winners today include Alcan, Dia Met, Pacifica Paper, Slocan Forest and Premdor.

Premdor is up after releasing its results for the second quarter ended June 30. Net income was US$13.1 million, the highest quarterly earnings ever recorded by the company and up 5% from the same period in 2000.

C.I. Fund Management Inc. also reported its year-end results for the year ended May 31. EBITDA was $319.9 million, or $1.75 per share for the period, up 27% from $1.38 per share in the same period in fiscal 2000.

Finally, SEAMARK Asset Management has closed its initial public offering with an underwriting syndicate led by BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., and consisting of RBC Dominion Securities Inc., Scotia Capital Inc., Raymond James Ltd., and Beacon Securities Limited.

In New York, stocks have had a volatile morning, but they aren’t far from where they started at midday. The Dow Jones industrial average is up 32 points to 10,208. The Nasdaq composite index has dropped five points to 1,957. The S&P 500 is down four ticks to 1,177.

The CDNX is also sliding today. At midday, it is down seven points to 3,136. Techs and oil are weak.

Volume is strong at almost 20 million shares, although almost 9 million is attributable to a couple of market debuts. The newcomers are Neptune Technologies & Bioressources Inc., which is down 5% to 95¢ on 5.1 million shares. Jenex Corp has jumped more than 700% to $1.25 on more than 3.6 million shares.