Trading has been stuck in a narrow range today. At midday, the TSE 300 is down 19 points to 8,075.

Volume is average at 79 million shares, almost evenly split between buyers and sellers. Market breadth is about even, too.

On a sector basis, there’s a slight negative bias to the action, with nine of the TSE’s 14 groups flat to down.

Not much is moving, however. The industrials are leading the way lower, with tech stocks off about 2%. Utilities and mines are weak, too. Financial stocks are the strongest group.

Gulf Canada is the top trader today, moving more than 10 million shares. Its stock price remains unchanged.

360networks continues to slide, dropping another 12¢ to just 56¢ in heavy trading. Nortel Networks is providing the downside heft, however. The former giant is off still another 2.5% on 4.8 million shares.

But Nortel isn’t leading a tech parade down, it’s making that journey alone. The other losers are a mixed bag of names such as Alcatel, Placer Dome, Barrick Gold, Enbridge, Akita Drilling, Enerflex, Canadian Tire and Aastra Technologies.

The Rogers Communications bid for Rogers Wireless continues to drive trading. Rogers is up 2.3% today, while the wireless stock is up 3%.

Other gainers include Teck Corp. and Bombardier. Royal Bank is leading the financials higher, advancing 1% in active trading.

Pivotal, MEC Holdings, ATI Technologies, Zenon Enviro, Cott, Magna and Future Shop have advanced, too.

In business news, Maxim Power is entering into an agreement with TransCanada PipeLines Ltd. to buy a TCPL plant in Alberta for $12.95 million. Maxim will pay $4.32 million in cash, and issue 5,229,154 Maxim common shares to TCPL.

Onex is continuing to cull through the faltering cinema business. It and Oaktree Capital Management LLC have signed a letter of intent with GC Companies Inc., parent company of General Cinema Theatres Inc., to acquire the reorganized GC Companies.

The firm has been under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Onex and Oaktree will invest approximately US$55 million for 100% of the common stock of the reorganized company as part of an approximate US$330 million reorganization.

In New York, stocks are trading flat without much conviction. Markets seem to be waiting for direction, either in the form of earnings warnings, good forecasts, or economic data.

The Dow Jones industrial average is up 26 points to 10,975. The Nasdaq composite index has gained five points to 2,175. The S&P 500 is unchanged at 1,256.

The CDNX is up six ticks to 3 351. Volume is light at 14.4 million shares. Techs and oils are weak, but mines are up. Highpoint Telecommunications is the top trader, flat at 3¢ on 711,500 shares traded.