TSX stocks trading flat

Canadian stocks were trading near the flat line early Tuesday -- up 2.43 points at 11,540.82 -- after the BoC announced it is leaving interest rates at 0.25 percent -- and will likely keep rates that low until the middle of next year.

The BoC warned that heightened volatility and the sharp rise in the Canadian dollar ''are working to slow growth and subdue inflation pressures.''

''The current strength in the dollar is expected, over time, to more than fully offset the favourable developments since July,'' the bank said in a statement.

The loonie started 2009 at 82.1 cents US and on Tuesday was down 0.91 of a cent to 96.24 cents US as the bank said the country's gross domestic product is still expected to grow by 3 percent next year, but only 3.3 percent in 2011, two-tenths of a point less than the Bank of Canada had previously forecast in July.

In other economic data -- Statistics Canada's composite leading index rose by 1.1 percent in September, its fourth straight gain. And the August reading was revised up from 1.1 percent to 1.2 percent. In September, seven of the 10 components advanced, led again by the stock market and the housing index.

And wholesale sales in current dollars fell 1.4 percent in August to $41 billion.

Down soouth -- the U.S government reported that housing starts rose to the annual rate of 590,000 in September, from a revised 587,000 the prior month. This fell short of the 610,000 rate forecast by a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.

Building permits fell to the annual rate of 573,000 in September from 580,000 in August. The number fell short of the 595,000 expected by Briefing.com consensus.

The government also released its report on inflation at the wholesale level for September. The Producer Price Index slipped 0.6% in September, seasonally adjusted, following a rise of 1.7% in August. Without including food and energy prices, the core PPI edged down 0.1% in September, compared to an August rise of 0.2%.

On the corporate front -- Aastra Technologies Ltd. was surging $4.23 to $28.04 after it said Monday it will begin issuing a quarterly dividend due to a jump in its third-quarter profit. The communications equipment maker said shareholders will receive a 15-cent dividend after its profits nearly tripled to $9.6 million.

Also -- a Spanish union is planning to strike at an Opel auto plant to protest job cuts planned by Canadian auto parts giant Magna International. Magna has said it wants to lay off 1,350 of the 7,500 workers at Zaragoza and shift part of the factory's production to Germany as part of its takeover of Opel from General Motors Co. Magna shares were off 15 cents to $46.90.

Air Canada's unionized employees are about to become shareholders with a 15 percent stake in the airline in exchange for agreeing to a pension moratorium. The airline plans to issue next week more than 17.6 million class B shares to a new trust on behalf of its Canadian-based unions. Its shares were up 4 cents at $1.46.

Swiss drug company Lonza Group has withdrawn a US$485-million takeover offer for Canadian pharmaceutical products company Patheon Inc., after the deal was blocked by investment firm JLL Partners. The New York company is Patheon's largest investor. Patheon shares fell 14 cents to $2.70.

ON BAYSTREET

Of the 14 TSX subgroups, 8 were higher. Health-care stocks were up 0.71%, tech issues were ahead 0.64%, while mining stocks advanced 0.41%.

On the downside -- gold stocks suffered the heaviest losses, down 0.80%, utilities were off 0.33% and energy issues slid 0.23%.

The TSX Venture Exchange was off 1.44 points to 1,337.33, while the Nasdaq Canada index lost 5.35 points to 715.25.

ON WALLSTREET

Stocks opened slightly to the downside despite a handful of better than expected earnings as Wall Street took a breather and economic data mostly disappointed.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 23 points, to 10,069, and the S&P 500 gave up 3 points, to 1,094. The Nasdaq shed 5 points, to 2,172.

DuPont reported third-quarter earnings of 45 cents per share, beating the consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. But the Wilmington, Del.- based chemical maker missed on revenue, which fell 18% year-over-year to $6 billion. The company narrowed its full-year earnings guidance to a range of $1.95 to $2.05 per share, toward the high end of its previous forecast.

Pfizer reported third-quarter sales of $11.6 billion, a 3% decline from a year ago, beating expectations. The New York City-based drugmaker reported a 26% surge in earnings, to net income of $2.9 billion, or diluted earnings per share of 43 cents. Pfizer, which completed its acquisition of drugmaker Wyeth on Oct. 15, increased full-year guidance to a revenue range of $49 billion to $50 billion, and diluted EPS of $1.45 to $1.50.

Atlanta-based Coca-Cola reported third-quarter earnings of 81 cents per share, down 1% from the prior year and matching expectations. Net revenue decreased 5% year-to-date to $8 billion, slipping below the forecast. Consolidated net income of $1.9 billion was flat compared to the year-ago quarter.

Crude oil futures were falling 6 cents, to $79.55, while gold gained $6.10 to $1064.20 an ounce.