TORONTO (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's main index climbed slightly yesterday, lifted by energy issues that helped offset tech shares that were hurt by concerns of a weakening appetite for business spending.

Economic news set the tone early after data showed the Canadian economy had a slight 0.3 percent annual growth rate in the second quarter and narrowly escaped falling into a recession, generally defined as two quarters of decline in a row.

Technology shares were bruised by worries that the sector could falter after bellwether Dell Inc said companies are cutting back on tech spending.

The comments helped make Research In Motion the biggest drag by weight on the Toronto index, as the BlackBerry-maker fell 3.1 percent to C$129.37. The group overall lost 0.4 percent.

Kate Warne, Canadian market strategist at Edward Jones in St. Louis, Missouri, said that while the economic numbers set a sour tone, the limited market reaction showed investors were more interested in the outlook going forward.

"While, yes, it says things were worse than we actually thought then, it doesn't necessarily tell us a lot about what happens next," said Ms Warne.

"The things that are interesting is that while growth has been slower than expected, the things that are underlying it show a slowdown in consumer spending, which is no surprise."

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 20.77 points, or 0.15 percent, at 13,771.25 with all but two of its 10 main sectors rising ahead of the Labour Day long weekend.

On the upside, the energy sector rose 0.8 percent as investors kept their eyes on Hurricane Gustav, which was projected to enter the Gulf of Mexico early next week.

Oil edged down to settle at $115.46 a barrel after climbing earlier in the day as anxiety over potential damage to oil refineries and platforms in the Gulf eased.

Suncor Energy rose 1.4 percent to C$60.80, while Canadian Natural Resources added 0.7 percent to C$90.64.