Stocks are holding onto their early gains. Talk of a rate cut and some positive corporate news pushed stocks higher on the open.

At midday, the S&P/TSX index is up 49 points to 6344. Volume is about average today at 90 million shares, with the buying swamping the selling 55:19. Market breadth is also quite bullish, with winners outnumbering losers by about 10 to seven.

Most sectors are rallying today, led by a 4% gain in tech stocks. Consumer stocks, energy plays, industrials, health care and diversifieds are all up on little more than improved market sentiment. Financials are fighting to a draw. And there is some very minor selling in utilities.

Nortel Networks is back at the head of the tech trade today. It’s up 10% on 18.3 million shares traded. There are also gains in Celestica, Research in Motion, and CAE.

Encana is powering the energy group higher, with a 2.3% gain in active trading. There are also gains in Suncor Energy, Nikos Resources and Precision Drilling. Petro Canada is down, however, as is Drillers Technology.

Inco is rallying on active volume today. WestJet is up, as is Bombardier and QLT. CollBrands is gaining 5.5% on news that it is going to reconsider its options plan.

The financial group is uncharacteristically subdued. CIBC has gained 0.7%. Thwarted merger partners, Bank of Montreal and Scotiabank are both down in active trading. Sun Life is weaker too.

On the downside, Abitibi is softer today. There is also some selling in Cameco, Kinross, TVX Gold, and Dalsa.

The small caps are going their own way once again today. The S&P/TSX Venture index is down three points to 902 Volume is on the light side at 10.7 million shares. Pan Asia Mining is leading the way once again, flat at 4¢ on 359,000 shares.

In business news, BCE has closed a public offering of debt for total gross proceeds of $2 billion.

In New York, there were gains on the open, which were quickly given back. But the markets recovered by midday. The Dow Jones industrial average is up 53 points to 8422. The S&P 500 has added eight points to 891. The Nasdaq composite index is up 25 points to 1325.