North American stocks continued to struggle in midday trading, with a disappointing report on U.S. durable goods orders suggesting yet again that the economic recovery is stumbling.
At noon, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 21.7 points or 0.2 per cent, to 10,516. The broader S&P 500 was down 5 points or 0.4 per cent, to 1,109.
Telecom services and energy stocks were the only positive subindexes within the S&P 500, but both were up only slightly.
Meanwhile, health care stocks fell 1.2 per cent, financials fell 0.7 per cent and information technology stocks fell 0.5 per cent.
In Canada, the S&P/TSX was down 26 points or 0.2 per cent, to 11,691.
Information technology stocks were up 1.6 per cent over enthusiasm about a potential new BlackBerry model from Research In Motion Ltd. Materials rose 0.5 per cent, despite a dip by Teck Resources Ltd. that followed the release of the company's second quarter results. Financials rose a slight 0.1 per cent.
Telecom services were the big drags, falling 1.6 per cent over concerns about rising competition within the wireless sector. Energy stocks fell 1.1 per cent after the price of crude oil fell $1 (U.S.) a barrel, to $76.50.