Stocks are stuck in a narrow range today, absent any big market-moving news. The S&P/TSX composite index is up just nine points to 7,519.

U.S. jobless claims came in worse than expected, although not as bad as some feared given weakness in recent data.

There was no economic new out in Canada this morning, although Finance Minister John Manley is being quoted as saying that he may have to drop his growth forecast to about 2% because of various economic shocks.

On the other hand, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Robert McTeer is forecasting faster growth for the U.S., which is boosting Canada’s fortunes in some eyes.

TSX volume remains moderate at 129.1 million shares, with buyers ahead of sellers by 32:21. Market breadth is modestly positive, winners lead losers 49:46.

Techs are gaining again, as are biotechs, energy and utilities. Golds, real estate and materials are weaker.

Nortel is leading the tech group higher. The stock is up 1.1% in relatively light volume of just 8 million shares. There are also gains in ATI and Sierra Wireless. BCE is down a little.

Financial stocks are again attracting plenty of attention. Manulife continues its slide, down another 0.3% in active trading. Dreams of future industry deals has CIBC up better than 1%, TD Bank has gained almost 1%, but Bank of Montreal is down almost 1%. Royal Bank is lower, too, while Sun Life is up 1.3%.

Canadian Natural Resources is leading the energy stocks higher, up 1.3% in active trading. EnCana and Talisman Energy are up in strong volume too. Kensington Energy and Tusk Energy are strong too.

PetroKazakhstan is up almost 7%, despite news that regulators in Kazakhstan have ordered it to repay US$6.3 million for overcharging. PetroKazakhstan says that it has conducted an initial review of the notification and concluded that it contains a number of factual errors which if corrected would reduce the claim to less than US$400,000. PetroKazakhstan says that it considers that the position taken by the agency is not legally justified.

The biotechs are generally making gains, with World Heart Corp leading the way, up 17%, on news that its Novacor LVAS (left ventricular assist system) will be more available to American patients after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid decided to increase payments for each implant from approximately US$54,000 to US$70,000.

Gains are also coming in Angiotech and QLT. Air Canada is bouncing back a bit today, too.

The weakest sector is today is gold stocks. Eldorado Gold is almost 4% lower, and there is selling in Apollo Gold, Wheaton River, Iamgold, Meridian Gold and Northern Orion Exploration.

Alcan is the only stock losing ground in notable volume. It has dropped 1%. There is selling in Rogers Communications.

In M&A news, Saputo has entered into a preliminary agreement to acquire Molfino Hermanos S.A., the third-largest dairy processor in Argentina. The purchase price would be US$50.8 million.

CCL Industries has completed the agreement to purchase the shares of Avery Dennison’s European label converting business. The total price, which includes anticipated restructuring and other costs, is approximately $85 million. CCL will use the proceeds from the recently announced disposition of its four non-core businesses, along with cash on hand, to pay for the deal.

In earnings news, Cangene reports net income for fiscal 2003 was $40.1 million, compared with $10.4 million last year.

In New York, stocks have been trading in a narrow range all morning. At midday, the Dow Jones industrial average is more or less unchanged at 9,470. The Nasdaq composite index has dropped seven points to 1,825. The S&P 500 is down a point to 1,017.

The S&P/TSX Venture index is down three points to 1,382. Volume is lighter than usual at 28.5 million shares. ECU Silver Mining Inc. is leading the way, down 1.5¢ to 12.5¢ on 1.54 million shares.