Most North American stocks are expected to rise at Tuesday’s open, getting a lift from a pullback in oil prices.

Crude-oil prices eased 42¢ to $56.59 a barrel early Tuesday, a day after surging past $58 a barrel in New York Mercantile Exchange trading.

Oil prices will be in the spotlight again today as U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan addresses a petrochemical conference later in the day in San Antonio, Texas.


In today’s business news, Morgan Stanley said it is looking to spin off its Discover credit-card unit, a business built by embattled chief Eeecutive Philip Purcell.

Bombardier Transportation has received a US$323 million order from Trenitalia (Italian Railways) to supply 100 electric locomotives, the transportation equipment maker said today.

No major economic data are scheduled for release Tuesday in Canada or the United States.

Toronto stocks ended flat on Monday after a choppy session driven by movements in oil prices. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 7.73 points, or 0.08%, at 9,630.90.

Weaknesses in the financials, tech and materials groups were sufficient to keep the overall index slightly lower.

The financials group fell 0.38%, paced by weakness in most big banks and insurers.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index fell 18.23 points, or 0.96%, to end at 1,886.28.

In New York, U.S. stocks ended higher as crude oil retreated from record highs, while a surge of almost 5% in shares of insurer American International Group Inc. boosted the Dow.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 16.84 points, or 0.16%, to close at 10,421.14. The S&P 500 gained 3.20 points, or 0.27%, to end at 1,176.12. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index gained 6.26 points, or 0.32%, to 1,991.07.