North American stocks may open mixed Monday as oil prices topped US$64 a barrel.

Oil prices climbed 30¢ to US$64.51 a barrel in early trading Monday despite a mild start to winter in the U.S.

The Canadian dollar opened at US85.51¢, down 0.31 of a cent.

There are no major economic releases from Canada or the United States today.

In M&A news Boston Scientific made a formal offer to buy Guidant for US$72 a share, and said it had found a buyer for several Guidant units .

In other business news, Ford Motor Co. announced it plans to build two new cars at its assembly plant in Oakville, Ont.

Ford said Sunday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit that it will build the two crossover utility vehicles, the 2007 Ford Edge and the Lincoln MKX, at the southern Ontario plant. The new vehicles will go on sale late this year.

Dofasco Inc. said Friday its board is unanimously recommending that shareholders accept a $63 a share takeover bid from ThyssenKrupp AG.

Overseas, European stock markets moved higher, with auto maker DaimlerChrysler rising on a report it hired Goldman Sachs to field offers for its loss-making Smart car division.

Markets in Tokyo were closed for a holiday.


On Friday, Toronto stocks surged ahead, as the senior exchange marked the end of a strong first week of 2006. Resource and technology stocks continued to pace the market.

The S&P/TSX composite index rose 112.72, or 0.98%, to 11,620.40. Though the market inched ahead just 6.20 points yesterday, the exchange gained 3.1% for the week.

The S&P/TSX Venture composite index finished up 43.46 points, or 1.92%, to 2,307.40.

In New York, investors drove markets to highs not seen since mid-2001. A lower-than-expected jobs report gave hope that the Federal Reserve was nearing the end of its current cycle of rate hikes, which fuelled the buying spree.

The Dow Jones composite index gained 77.16 points, or 0.71%, to 10,959.31, the S&P 500 was up 11.97 points, or 0.94%, at 1,285.45, and the Nasdaq composite index climbed 28.75 points, or 1.26%, to 2,305.62.

The Dow edged closer to 11,000 and, with the S&P 500 index, posted the best weekly percentage gains in seven months. The Nasdaq Composite index had its best week since August 2004.

For the week, the Dow rose 2.25%, S&P gained 2.97% and Nasdaq rose 4.55%.