Markets are rallying impressively today despite a slew of ugly economic numbers on both sides of the border.

Bargain hunting and quarter-end window dressing seem to be the most popular explanations for the upside action. At midday, the TSE 300 is up 144 points to 6,813.

Volume is strong at 92 million shares, with buyers holding an almost five to one edge on sellers. Winners outnumber losers two to one.

Golds are down today, as investors rotate away from safety. Every other sector is up, without exception.

Miners and energy stocks are up about 3%, techs are up more than 5%, and there are strong gains in financials, consumer stocks, utilities and conglomerates.

There’s heavy upside volume in in the S&P/TSE 60 iUnits, as investors bet on a rebound. The big gainers today are companies picking themselves off the mat, such as Bombardier, up 8% in heavy trading. By contrast, Air Canada is down 2%.

Energy stocks are making solid gains today, with strong action in Westcoast Energy, Anderson, Suncor, Nexen, Talisman and Precision Drilling.

Nortel Networks is leading the techs higher, followed by Celestica and JDS Uniphase. There are also gains in BCE, CP, CP Ships, and Tembec. Bank of Nova Scotia is leading the financials trading higher across all subsectors.

The downside is led by the golds as a sector, with Barrick and Meridian leading the way. But there are also selected losers among the landslide of winners, with names such as Manitoba Telecom, Cryptologic, Methanex, Shawcor, and Fording, all on the downside.

In business news, Aastra Technologies has entered into an agreement to purchase Lucent Technologies’ digital video business. Terms of the deal are not being disclosed.

A preliminary prospectus has been filed for an initial public offering of units of Connors Bros. Income Fund. Proceeds of the offering will be used to buy the business of Connors Bros., a wholly owned subsidiary of George Weston, and one of Canada’s oldest food producers with an estimated 14% share of the global sardine market. Weston intends to divest several assets, including Connors Bros. with the closing of the Bestfoods Baking Co. acquisition. The offering will be underwritten by a syndicate led by CIBC World Markets Inc.

In New York, markets are tracking broadly higher. Markets are getting a boost from some consumer sentiment readings taken partly after the September 11 attacks. The numbers show weakness, but not crippling breakdowns in consumers’ attitudes.

The Dow is up 128 points to 8,809. The Nasdaq composite index has gained 33 points to 1,494. The S&P 500 has gained 16 ticks to 1,034.

The CDNX is joining the rally today, gaining 6 points so far to 2,777. Volume is strong at 15 million shares so far today. Energy is leading the way back, despite sliding techs and flat oils. Masuparia Gold Corp is leading the trade, up 17% to 14¢ on 1.6 million shares.