Markets are looking a little flat this morning, which is encouraging given the magnitude of yesterday’s rally.

Techs are clearly the most supportive sector, with hope for a recovery prevailing in that area. Intel Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc. and Oracle Corp. are all up in pre-market trading.

In economic news there are more good signs in the United States., with reports that U.S. initial jobless claims dropped by 18,000 last week to 475,000. However, the slide was a bit less than expected, and it suggests continued layoffs in the coming weeks.

In Canada, it was reported that the value of building permits issued by municipalities rose 1% in October to $3.3 billion. Construction intentions for single-family dwellings reached their second-highest monthly level in the last 10 years.

Also, the Help-wanted Index fell 5% in November from October to 133, the seventh consecutive month of decline. Nine of 10 provinces recorded monthly decreases. The national index was down 24.4% compared with November 2000. This is the largest year-over-year decline in recent years.

In Europe, stocks are generally up, as their traders attempt to catch up with yesterday’s big rally in the U.S. Techs are leading that trade, too.

As well, the European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged this morning. The FTSE is up 32 points to 5,366. The CAC 40 has gained 10 ticks to 4,687. The DAX has added 40 points to 5,303.

Overnight in Asia, stocks also continued to rally. The Nikkei added 143 points to 10,857. The Hang Seng rose 67 points to 11,746.

In M&A news, Bayer AG says it will sell three of its businesses and split the company into four separate entities.

Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. is buying Cor Therapeutics Inc. for US$2 billion in stock.

Finally, Edgar Bronfman Jr. has resigned from Vivendi Universal SA. Bronfman will remain vice chairman of the board.