By James Langton

(November 17 – 09:00 ET) – The market is facing a mixed picture this morning. Stocks are sliding a little in European trading but U.S. equity futures are pointing to a rebound.

Cisco Systems, Sun and VA Linux are up as a more positive outlooks emerge for them. It’s not clear if Nortel will be lifted, too, or if speculation of earnings trouble will keep it on the outside of any tech rally.

U.S. election uncertainty continues to hang over the market. Oil prices are slightly lower though as OPEC members and major oil consumers signaled prices were too high, which should be a bit supportive.

There’s no major economic news out today. Statistics Canada reports in its Monthly Survey of Manufacturing that firms shipped $44.9 billion worth of goods in September — 1.0% less than in August. The most significant drop was in the electrical and electronic products industry, which saw an 8.1% decline.

In Europe, stocks are weak, with Phillips leading the way down after announcing a takeover and DaimlerChrysler taking hits too. The DAX is down 60 points to 6782. The CAC 40 is off 51 to 6232. The FTSE is off just four points to 6426. DaimlerChrysler is down on the news that it will announce a fourth-quarter loss in its U.S. division.

In M&A news, Royal Philips Electronics NV is buying the healthcare unit of Agilent Technologies Inc. for US$1.7 billion in cash.

Overnight in Asia, stocks followed through on tech weakness. The Nikkei closed the week down 43 points to 14544. The Hang Seng lost 117 points to 15181.

In business news, Cinram International Inc. announced its results for the third quarter ending September 30, reporting net earnings of 1¢ per share, down from 24¢.