Stocks are jumping this morning on some positive corporate news, and word of a surprise oil production cut by OPEC. The prospect of higher energy prices is boosting stocks in that sector.

The S&P/TSX index is up 49 points at midday to 8,744. Volume is solid at 170.5 million shares, with the buying edging out the selling by a margin of about 15:11. Market breadth is bullish too, as winners outnumber losers 33:23.

Energy stocks are leading the way higher, gaining 2% on the OPEC news. Miners are also strong, adding 1.7%. There’s strength in industrials, golds and materials too.

Consumer staples and real estate are both down, albeit less than 0.5%.

EnCana is leading the trade today, it has gained 4.6% in heavy volume of 2.1 million shares, partly on the energy market news. The company also reported that continued strong reserves and sales growth in 2003. Its proven reserves grew 12% last year, it said. Ecana’s sales were up 13% in the fourth quarter of 2003.

Following EnCana, there’s strength in Suncor Energy, Petro Canada and Cameco. However, Thunder Energy and Gabriel Resources are down.

Bombardier is also a big winner. It has gained 3.7% in strong trading on news that SkyWest Airlines has placed a firm order for 12 regional jets. The contract value is estimated at $$389.8 million.

Inco is leading rock stocks higher, gaining 2.4% in active trading. Alcan has jumped 2.3%. The golds are also relatively strong, led by a 1.6% gain in Placer Dome. Barrick is up too, as is Nevsun Resources.

Bema Gold, however, has dropped 4.3% on word that it has launched an offering of approximately US$70 million of senior unsecured convertible notes.

There are solid gains in Western Silver, Gammon Lake Resources, and Gerdau AmeriSteel. Ipsco has gained 9% on news that it saw fourth quarter revenue reach a record of $381.5 million, but profit fell to $10.4 million from $12.8 million.

Technology stocks are mixed, with Nortel slipping 0.5% in active trading. Hip Interactive and ATI Tech are both down notably, too. However, Leitch Tech has gained 7.4%, Telesystem International Wireless and BCE are both higher.

The financial stocks are also mixed, with Manulife up 0.7%. Smaller gains have come in Scotiabank, TD Bank and Royal Bank. CIBC is down 0.7%, on word that its credit ratings could be downgraded. Laurentian Bank has lost 2.4% today so far.

Tahera continues to see extreme volatility. Today, it is down almost 11% in heavy volume of 16.7 million shares, as traders weigh its’ progress toward a viable mine in Nunavut.

Stelco is down 5% after it was reported that a U.S. vulture fund has cut its’ position in the troubled steelmaker almost in half.

In earnings news, Fortis reported that earnings were $14.7 million for the fourth quarter, up from $13.7 million for the fourth quarter last year. Annual earnings were $73.6 million, higher than earnings of $63.3 million for 2002.

Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc. saw fourth quarter net income climb to $35.6 million. The results for the quarter helped increase shareholder net income to a record $135 million in 2003, compared with $97.4 million the previous year.

Intrawest Corp. saw its second quarter earnings slip to US$238,000 from almost $2.8 million last year. However, total revenue for the quarter was $398.1 million compared with $212.7 million for the same period last year. EBITDA was $52.0 million compared with $36.4 million in the same period last year.

In New York, markets have continued to be mellow, trading around the unchanged mark. At midday, the Dow Jones industrial average is up 16 points to 10,595. The Nasdaq composite index is nine ticks higher 2,070.

The S&P/TSX Venture index is 14 points higher to 1,866. Volume is very heavy at 59.2 million shares, led by Spider Resources. It has dropped 2¢ to 21¢ in huge trading of 10.5 million shares on its’ latest drill results.