The Globe and Mail attempts to identify seasonally strong Canadian stocks for the fourth quarter in its Tuesday, Sept. 4, edition. The Globe's Craig McGee writes that the S&P/TSX composite index has been exceeding expectations this year, up 15.8 per cent so far. All sectors but health care have generated positive returns. To end the year, Mr. McGee says the market may still have room to run. Looking back, the period from October through December has historically been the strongest quarter of the year -- the median return for the fourth quarter dating back to 1956 has been 3.8 per cent and it has been positive 80 per cent of the time. The sectors that have made the biggest contributions include telecommunications, information technology, industrials and financials, with median fourth quarter returns of 7.5 per cent, 7.3 per cent, 7.1 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively, since 1988. To find the top stocks in these sectors Mr. McGee looked for positive 12-month and five-year return on equity, among other metrics. Stocks in seasonably strong sectors are Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services, Toromont Industries and Royal Bank of Canada.