Toronto stocks closed slightly higher on Tuesday, buoyed by gains in technology shares. The S&P/TSX composite index finished the session up 13.06 points at 6,290.73, led by a solid 1.1% increase in the information technology sector.

Celestica rose 24¢ to $17.34, while Cognos gained 79¢ to $33.44. Tech bellwether Nortel Networks gained 5¢ to $3.09.

The TSX energy sector finished 0.9% higher, as oilfield services company Tesco jumped 68¢ to $17.68 and Ensign Resource Service rose 49¢ to $18.55.

The price of crude oil declined US55¢ to US$36.72 a barrel. OPEC members decided on Tuesday to stick with their current crude oil production quotas, but said they are committed to keeping supplies flowing.

Bombardier shed down 21¢ to $3.39 after Standard & Poor’s lowered its rating on the firm and its subsidiaries from BBB-plus to BBB-minus – the lowest level above junk status.

WestJet shares climbed16¢ to $15.85 after it reported its revenue passenger miles rose 48.9% last month, compared with a year ago.

Toronto volume was a light 153.3 million shares worth $1.9 billion. Declines beat advances 597 to 420, with 260 unchanged.

The S&P/TSX Venture composite index closed down 11.11 at 1071.94. Trading was active on a volume of 34.9 million shares worth 13.6 million dollars, with 167 advances, 240 declines and 584 issues unchanged.

In New York, stocks closed lower after seesawing the unchanged mark throughout the session. The growing threat of war and the deepening diplomatic rifts over Iraq dampened Wall Street investors’ appetites.

The S&P 500 Index dropped 6.75 points to 800.73, while the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average fell 44.12 points, to 7,524.06.

The tech-laced Nasdaq composite index sagged 6.9 points to 1,271.47.

The Canadian dollar lost almost a third of a cent Tuesday. It closed down US0.31¢ at US67.94¢.