By James Langton

(December 12 – 09:00 ET) – Earnings are taking centre stage this morning after several warnings were issued last night. Eastman Kodak Co., Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and DoubleClick all released warnings about growth prospects for the upcoming quarter.

This string of warnings is knocking back tech stocks. On top of this, GE General Electric Co. said it will take US$4 billion in pretax charges related to the purchase of Honeywell International Inc.

There’s no major economic new on either side of the border. However, a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court deciding the U.S. election could come at any moment, and traders are keenly awaiting that news.

In Europe, stocks are falling on profit concerns for techs. The FTSE is down nine points to 6,361. The CAC 40 has dropped 31 points to 6,047. The DAX is down nine to 6,773.

In M&A news, Glaxo Wellcome plc and SmithKline Beecham plc say U.S. regulators have tentatively approved their US$68 billion merger.

Overnight in Asia, the Nikkei closed up 99 points to 15,115, despite fears that the upcoming Tankan Survey will reveal serious slowing in Japan’s economy. The Hang Seng dropped 79 points to close at 15,329.

In other business news, Magna Entertainment Corp. CEO Mark Feldman has resigned because the firm is moving from California to Toronto. Frank Stronach, chairman of Magna Entertainment and of Magna International, will fill in as interim CEO.

Spectra Premium Industries Inc. reported earnings for the third quarter of 2¢ a share, compared with 4¢ a share for the same period a year ago.