The stock market continues to deliver contrarian reactions to economic news. Today, the data was on the weak side, and the market is rallying. Canadian GDP was reported on the low side for February, and earlier numbers were revised lower. But, stocks are up.

Apart from the economic data, there also appears to be some bargain hunting action underway, and energy stocks continue to shine. The S&P/TSX index is up 39 points as a result, to 8271. Volume is quite weak however, with just 103.5 million shares traded. The buying volume is more than double the selling, holding an 11 to five edge. Market breadth is nearly even though, with winners edging losers 27:26.

The S&P/TSX Venture index is up three ticks at midday to 1651. Volume is on the low side at 29.4 million shares.

In New York, stocks are a bit mixed today, as traders weigh the latest economic and corporate news, and gird themselves for a weekend of geopolitical uncertainty. The Dow is up 37 points at midday to 10309. However, the Nasdaq has slipped 14 points to 1945.

Traders are receiving some comfort from the strong U.S. data. The Chicago purchasing managers index beat expectations, which is boosting expectations for other manufacturing reports. And, the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey’s final reading was revised up a little. March personal income data came out in line with consensus expectations, although personal consumption was a bit weak.

ON Bay Street, on a sector basis, there’s strength in miners, golds, energy and materials. All of these groups are rallying back after some tough days. Health care and real estate names are, conversely, giving back their recent gains.

Nortel is leading the trade today. It’s back up a little, almost 1%, in heavy trading of 18.7 million shares, as brave investors jump into the shamed tech giant. But, there is some buying in the tech group generally, with ATI up 3.7%. And, BCE is leading telecoms higher, with a 2.8% gain. Research in Motion is down a little though, as its CEO gets some bad PR for his part in the IPO allocation troubles of the tech bubble days. And, there is also selling in Sierra Wireless and Call-Net.

There are also plenty of solid gains in beaten up resource names, as some of that negative sentiment unwinds. Inco is up about 2%, and there is buying in Alcan, EnCana, Suncor Energy, Barrck and TransCanada.

Smaller resource names are also higher. Sino-Forest is rallying. Esprit Exploration has gained 8.5% on news that it earned 5¢ per share in the first quarter. Kirkland Lake Gold has added 5.4% after it raised $10 million. Pan American Silver, PetroKazakhstan, Bema Gold and Aur Resources are all up too.

In the financial group, the newly super-sized Manulife continues to lead the trade. Today, it is up 0.5% in active trading. Royal Bank is up, but CIBC and Bank of Montreal are down, suggesting that the market is downgrading the possibility of imminent bank mergers. But, TSX Group is down 3.6% and Fairfax Financial has dropped 3.2%.

On the downside, ID Biomedical is leading the way lower for biotechs. It has dropped 6% in active trading, on news that it had a net loss of $32.0 million for the year 2003, as compared with a net loss of $14.5 million for the year 2002. Against this, both Cryocath and Diagnocure are higher today.

Boardwalk Equities is leading the real estate area lower. Paramount Energy Trust is down 3.2% to $11.20 on news that it will raise $40.3 million at that price. There is also some selling in names such as Thomson, Talisman Energy, Compton Petroleum, and Lionore Mining.
In earnings news, Canadian Utilities Limited posted earnings of $74.5 million for its latest quarter, down from $85.9 million in the same period last year. And, Atco had earnings of $38.2 million, off from $45.6 million last year.

Also, Brascan Corp. reported that it earned US$147 million in its first quarter.
Alcatel Canada Inc saw net income after good will at 134 million euros. It also upgraded its expectations of year-over-year revenue growth both for the coming quarters and for the full year 2004.

In other business news, SR Telecom has begun a comprehensive restructuring initiative that will significantly reduce its cost base. The plan calls for a global adjustment to SR Telecom’s sales, research and development, manufacturing, and support staff. The restructuring charges associated with the plan will be recognized as they occur in the second and third quarters of fiscal 2004.