Stocks look modestly positive this morning, led by the techs.

Hope for economic recovery is behind the expected strength. Names such as Sun Microsystems Inc., EMC Corp. and Juniper Networks Inc. are up.

Also, the sentiment is getting a boost from news that Home Depot saw its earnings jump 53% in its most recent quarter. Consumer confidence data is due out later today.

European stocks started the rally this morning after a report showed that German business confidence rose more than expected in February. This has given way to market optimism, and strength in big names such as Nokia Oyj, Deutsche Bank AG and luxury goods maker LVMH.

The FTSE is up 46 points to 5,147. The CAC 40 has added 72 points to 4,378. The DAX is up 66 points to 4,930.

Overnight in Asia, things were mixed. Worries about Japan’s latest bank bailout plans had traders punishing stocks in that country. The Nikkei dropped 94 points to 10,202. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng added 51 points to 10,547.

In earnings news today, Bank of Montreal reported net income of $372 million.

Plaintree Systems Inc. recorded a net loss for the third quarter of $1,287,305, compared to $1,288,426 for the previous quarter.