Toronto stocks closed mixed Wednesday, as the telecoms sector staged a mini-rally amid a market bracing for the start of war in Iraq. The S&P/TSX composite index added 14.87 points to close at 6,453.48.

U.S. President George W. Bush said his forces will invade Iraq if President Saddam Hussein does not flee the country by 20:00 ET Wednesday.

The telecoms sector finished the session ahead 2%, and helped balance a 2.4% decline in information technology stocks.

Shares of Telus rose 90¢ to $16.45, while BCE shares gained moved 22¢ to close at $27.92.

Nortel shares dropped 8¢ to $3.39, while ATI Technologies fell 45¢ to $6.70. Celestica shed 93¢ to $18.92.

Gold stocks dropped 1.9%, as the price of gold fell US$1.50 an ounce to US$336.20. Placer Dome slipped 35¢ to $13.80; Kinross shed 39¢ to $8.60.

CAE, the flight simulator company, plunged 91¢ to $3.26, after it announced a US$100 million convertible debenture offering.

Investors are also worried that Canada’s non-participation in the war against Iraq could hurt CAE’s prospects for future U.S. military contracts.

Dupont Canada shares soared 25% following a $21-a-share takeover offer from its parent. Dupont Canada stock rose $4.35 to $21.59.

Biomira shares jumped 22¢ to $1.80 after it said it would present the results of its Phase II colorectal cancer trial at a conference in late May.

Quebecor World shares continued to fall, slipping 77¢ to $23.85, as the market reacts to the surprise resignation of its CEO on Tuesday.

The S&P/TSX Venture composite index closed up 1.02 at 1063.02. Trading was active on a volume of 32.1 million shares worth 13.4 million dollars, with 153 advances, 199 declines and 559 issues unchanged.

In New York, blue-chip stocks extended a rally to six days as investors hope for a short war against Iraq. Technology issues, however, sagged on a cautious outlook from Oracle Corp.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 71.22 at 8,265.45, for a six-day advance of 741 points.

The S&P 500 index rose 7.57 to 874.02. The last time the Dow and S&P 500 saw six straight days of gains was August 2000.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 3.47 points to 1,397.08.

The Canadian dollar fell 0.37¢ to US67.45¢.