Toronto stocks closed higher Tuesday, buoyed by rebounding energy and utility shares.

The 300 advanced 31.99 points to 6,831.

Overall, seven of the TSE’s 14 sub-indices posted gains rose, with oil and gas rising 1.08%, and utilities climbing 4.2%.

Talisman Energy jumped 95¢ cents to close at $55.65.

Today’s big loser was Air Canada. The stock plunged 14%, or 50¢, to $2.85, after the Canadian government announced a short-term bailout of the airline industry following the September 11 attacks. The government said Air Canada needed restructuring and possibly new foreign investment

Nortel Networks said after markets closed that it would slash 15,000 more jobs from its payroll and record a $3.6 billion loss in its third quarter as it adjusts its operations to allow it to break even at a quarterly revenue level well below $4 billion.

Nortel closed down 25¢ at $8.33. The stock was the top trader on the TSE today, with over 9 million shares traded.

Some of the progeny of Canadian Pacific enjoyed gains today turning their first session after being independent of their parent company. Fairmont Hotels rose 14%, while PanCanadian Energy rose 3.56%.

It was a busy day on the Canadian Venture Exchange. Over 32 million shares changed hands. Market momentum was split with 160 advances, 160 declines and 498 issues unchanged. The CDNX index closed up 12.36 at 2,827.29

In New York, stocks closed with solid gains after the Federal Reserve cut the overnight lending rate by 50 basis points. Indices took a hit after the Feed’s announcement, but buyers too charge late in the session.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 113.76 points to 8,950.56. The Nasdaq composite index gained 11.87 points to 1,492.33, while the S&P 500 advanced 12.78 to 1,051.33.