Research In Motion, Suncor May Rise; Goldcorp, Transat May Fall

By John Kipphoff

Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Research In Motion Ltd. may rise, based on bids on the Toronto Stock Exchange, after the maker of the BlackBerry e-mail phone introduced a new ``flip'' handset.

Suncor Energy Inc. may gain as crude oil prices held steady above a five-month low. WestJet Airlines Ltd. may decline for a second day following a report that its workers are in talks with the Canadian Auto Workers union about organizing employees at the company.

The Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index declined 3.9 percent to 12,146.76 yesterday in Toronto, the most since Jan. 21. Canada's main equity benchmark, which derives more than three-quarters of its value from energy, materials and financial stocks, has lost $142.1 billion (C$152.24 billion) of its value in six trading days this month. It has fallen 19 percent from its June 18 peak.

Research In Motion may gain C$4.24 to C$110.27, bids already submitted in Toronto indicated. The company, which is seeking to dent Nokia Oyj's dominance of the market for e-mail phones, introduced a version of the BlackBerry Pearl with a flip cover. The phone will be available later this year, Co-Chief Executive Officer Jim Balsillie said yesterday in an interview.

The announcement will be viewed as a positive for the stocks, Citigroup Inc. analyst Jim Suva wrote in a note today.

Crude oil rose 84 cents to $104.10 a barrel in electronic trading in New York. Oil pared an earlier gain of as much as $1.56, on concerns slowing economic growth will trim demand.

Suncor, the world's second-biggest oil-sands producer, may gain C$1.01 to C$46.68, bids showed.

WestJet may fall 35 cents to c$13.65. Canada's second- biggest airline said it hasn't had any discussions with the Canadian Auto Workers and isn't aware of any employees doing so, following reports the union has approached its workers. The CAW is in preliminary talks with WestJet workers, a Canadian Press news service article in the Globe and Mail reported yesterday, citing comments by union president Ken Lewenza.

U.S. stock-index futures advanced as forecasts from FedEx Corp. and Texas Instruments Inc. allayed concern earnings will keep slowing, overshadowing Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s larger-than-estimated $3.9 billion loss.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Kipphoff in Montreal at jkipphoff@bloomberg.net.