North American markets rallied Wednesday on hopes that the war in Iraq is moving more quickly toward conclusion. The S&P/TSX composite index jumped 76.03 points, or 1.2%, to close at 6,411.15.

The TSX information technology sector led the market with a 3.76% rise, while the heavily weighted financial services sector provided the biggest upward push, rising 1.31%.

In the tech sector, Research In Motion rose $1.70, or 8.9%, to $20.85, while Nortel Networks climbed 18¢, or 5.9%, to $3.23.

Among financials, Manulife Financial advanced $1.15 to $36.44, while TD gained 76¢ to $33.30.

Among active issues, Air Canada shares dropped $1.14 to 96¢ after it filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday. With more than 33 million shares traded, the beleaguered airline was easily the most active issue on the exchange.

WestJet shares rose 68 cents to close at $17.13.

The junior TSX Venture Exchange lost 5.89 points at 1,045.72.

In New York, markets shot higher as U.S.-led forces closed in on Baghdad, boosting investor optimism that the two-week-old war with Iraq might soon end.

The Dow closed up 215.20, or 2.7%, at 8,285.06, having gained 77 points Tuesday to snap a four-day losing streak.

The Nasdaq composite index climbed 48.40, or 3.6%, to 1,396.70. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 22.42, or 2.6%, to 880.90.

The Canadian dollar finished at US68.03¢ up from US67.84¢ at Tuesday’s close.