By James Langton

(November 29 – 09:00 ET) – Stocks are poised to open slightly higher today, bouncing off yesterday’s weakness.

U.S. third quarter GDP was reported up 2.4%, slightly stronger than expected, but in accord with the picture of slowing economy. Some economists take comfort in this indication of a soft landing. Yet this is the slowest pace for U.S. GDP in four years, hitting corporate profits.

Statistics Canada is reporting that energy prices pushed up both the Raw Materials Price Index and the Industrial Product Price Index in October.

The IPPI gained 4.4% over the past 12 months. Rising petroleum and coal product prices accounted for nearly half the annual increase, excluding petroleum and coal industrial product prices would have increased 2.4%. On a month-over-month basis, industrial prices gained 0.6% in October.

Meanwhile, manufacturers paid 20.4% more for their raw materials this October than they did in October 1999. Fuels were the biggest reason, excluding them raw material prices are up just 4.1%. On a month-over-month basis, the RMPI rose 0.5% in October, or just 0.2% excluding fuel.

StatsCan also reported that average weekly earnings for all employees were $630.57 in September, essentially unchanged from August, but up 2.9% from September 1999.

While stocks in the United States are poised for a bargain-hunting rally on the open, European stocks are down on profit worries. Firms such as Alcatel are leading the way down. In London, the FTSE is down 67 points to 6,183. In Paris, the CAC 40 is off 35 to 6,034. Germany’s DAX is down 45 points to 6,580.

In business news, Airbus Industrie won a US$3.4 billion order from Qantas Airways Ltd.

Weyerhaeuser Co. is taking its US$7.1 billion take-over offer for Willamette Industries directly to the shareholders, after company management turned up its nose.

Finning International Inc. announced a US$458 million cash offer for British company Hewden Stuart plc.

Overnight in Asia stocks were weak, following Wall Street. The Japanese Nikkei dropped 151 points to 14,508. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng surrendered 397 points to 14,169.