The New York equities markets were lower in early afternoon trade on Thursday after the Chicago Purchasing Manager’s index showed regional manufacturing in the Midwest was at 49.9 in November, a drop from October’s reading of 53.5. It was the first time since April 2003 that the Chicago index had come in below 50, the level at which manufacturing is said to be contracting rather than expanding. Some analysts were afraid that the new data was an indicator of what the nationwide purchasing managers numbers will say when the Institute for Supply Management releases its new figures on Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.28 percent lower by early afternoon in New York to 12,193.01, while the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.08 percent to 2,430.18 and the S&P 500 was 0.07 percent lower to 1,398.50.

Other factors in the decline were higher oil prices, a weaker dollar, and more new unemployment claims filed last week than had been expected. The good news was that, according to the US Commerce Department, consumer spending was up 0.2 percent in October after having fallen in September. That news was tempered, however, by an announcement from Wal-Mart that it expects its same-store sales to be even to only 1 percent higher in December. That news sent shares in the discount retailer 78 cents lower to $46.11.

Elsewhere in the retail sector, Gap Inc. dropped 2.5 percent to $18.59 on a bigger decline in same-store sales in November than had been expected. Meanwhile, Abercrombie & Fitch fell 3.4 percent to $67.21.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Pfizer added 49 cents to $27.56 after it said that it has a number of products that would enter the end stages of the development process in the next few years. It also increased its forecast for profits for the full year.

The New York equities markets were higher on Wednesday afternoon, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.4 percent to 12,190.12. The Nasdaq Composite had gained 0.4 percent as well, to 2,421.54, while the S&P 500 was 0.6 percent higher to 1,394.62. Gains came after the US Commerce Department said that the US economy grew at a 2.2 percent annualized rate in the third quarter, above the 1.6 percent growth rate estimated last month.

There were gains in the telecommunications sector. Verizon added 1.8 percent to $35 after AG Edwards raised its rating from “hold” to “buy”. AT&T gained 3 percent to $33.77 on the announcement that its high-speed internet service will be available at Wal-Mart stores in 13 states. Bell South and Qwest Communications were each 3.4 percent higher, to $44.34 and $7.86 respectively. Bell South said it will introduce a toll-free telephone service for homes, while Goldman Sachs took Qwest off its “least favorite” list.

The oil sector saw gains as crude oil prices advanced. ExxonMobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips all were up by 1.6 percent, with ExxonMobil at $75.37, Chevron at $70.96, and ConocoPhillips trading at $65.91.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Pfizer added 0.2 percent to $27.11 after it said it will lay off 2,000 sales representatives in the US, a job cut of around 20 percent of its sales force in the States.

The New York equities markets were lower at midday on Monday as investors returned from the long Thanksgiving Day weekend. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1 percent lower to 12,154.4, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.7 percent to 2,418.55 and the S&P 500 fell 1 percent to 1,386.74.

Retailers saw losses even though the National Retail Federation reported that average spending for the start of the holiday shopping season was up 18.9 percent from last year over the same period. JC Penney dropped 1 percent to $79.91 despite it’s statement Saturday that it was seeing a “good start” in holiday sales. Wal-Mart fell 1.8 percent to $47.06 after it said over the weekend that same-store sales in the US were down 0.1 percent in November, the first time it has seen a decline in that month in ten years. J Crew was 4.4 percent lower to $41.37 on a rating downgrade from CIBC, after gaining 22 percent last week on its profits report.

Stock exchanges were mixed. Nasdaq added 0.7 percent to $40.93 after elaborating on how it plans to raise the money for its bid on the London Stock Exchange. On the other hand, NYSE Group dropped 2.2 percent to $105.84 and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange fell 2.6 percent to $2.55.

The financial services sector was lower as Goldman Sachs declined 2.1 percent to $197.37. Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns each fell 2.4 percent, to $77.06 and $154.76 respectively.

Automobile maker Ford Motor was 2.7 percent lower to $8.21 on its announced plan to borrow $18 million dollars. It said it would back the loans with collateral.

Internet search engine Google dropped 2.6 percent to $491.98 on profit-taking.

The New York equities markets were mixed at the mid-point in the session on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite lower and the S&P 500 up slightly. The Dow was 0.02 percent lower to 12,314.54, while the Nasdaq had dropped 0.1 percent to 2,449.87. Meanwhile, the S&P was 0.08 percent higher to 1,401.57.

Google’s share price rose above $500 for the first time as it added 1.8 percent to $504.13 after going as high as $505.72 earlier in the day. Google has gained 37.6 percent since the beginning of August.

Boeing was up 1.6 percent to $90.54 on the news that Korean Air has placed an order for 25 aircraft. The order was said to be worth $5.5 billion dollars.

Oregon Steel Mills dropped 1.2 percent to $63 after its 8.2 percent gain on Monday after it was announced that Russian company Evraz Group will buy the steel maker. Elsewhere in the sector, share prices were up. Nucor added 2.5 percent to $58.88.

Dell Computer was 1.1 percent higher to $24.92 ahead of its quarterly report, due after trade closes for the day. The report, which was originally supposed to have been released last Thursday, is widely expected to show a drop in earnings per share of almost 40 percent.

Nasdaq dropped 0.9 percent to $37.37 amid speculation that it is thinking about raising its offer for the London Stock Exchange after its most recent bid was rejected on Monday.

At the mid-point of the trading session on Monday, the New York equities markets were higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.05 percent to 12,348.83. The Nasdaq Composite was 0.3 percent higher to 2,453.64, while the S&P 500 had gained 0.2 percent to 1,403.71.

Consolidation news was in focus. In the mining sector, Freeport-McMoran said it will purchase Phelps Dodge for $25.9 billion in cash and stock. If the deal goes through it will create the largest publicly traded copper company in the world. While Freeport-McMoran dropped 1.2 percent on the news to $56.71, Phelps Dodge added 28.3 percent to $121.87.

Nasdaq offered for the three-quarters of the London Stock Exchange that it doesn’t already own. While the London Stock Exchange rejected the offer on the basis that it “substantially undervalued“ the exchange, Nasdaq’s shares were still 1.6 percent higher to $37.15. Elsewhere in the sector, the New York Mercantile Exchange was up 2.1 percent to $135.75.

In the steel sector, Nucor added 3.4 percent to $59.04. AK Steel was 3.6 percent higher to $15.17, while Steel Dynamics gained 4.4 percent to $62.71 and US Steel was up 6.5 percent to $75.15. All had seen significant gains on Friday as well. Some of the gains came on the news that Evraz Group of Russia said that it will purchase Oregon Steel Mills for $2.3 billion. Oregon Steel Mills was 7.7 percent higher to $63.51.

At mid-afternoon on Friday, the New York equities markets were higher for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 1.7 percent to 12,314.86, while the Nasdaq Composite had gained 2.1 percent during the week to 2,440.98 and the S&P 500 was 1.3 percent higher over the week to 1,398.96.

There were several new listings during the week. Rental car company Hertz, listed at $15 per share to start, gained 4.5 percent by the end of the week to $15.67, while Halliburton’s KBR unit added 28.6 percent to $21.87 after debuting at $17 per share. The New York Mercantile Exchange was launched at $59 per share but by mid-afternoon Friday it had added 137 percent to $151.26.

The airlines sector was higher after US Airways offered an unsolicited bid for Delta Airlines worth $8 billion. US Airways added 19.8 percent to $59.06 after going as high as $62.57. Delta is currently in bankruptcy protection. Elsewhere in the sector JetBlue gained 9.4 percent to $14.52, while Continental added 15.6 percent to $42.07 and AirTran was 25.2 percent higher to $12.92.

Clear Channel Communications added 1.1 percent on the week to $35.35 after it agreed to be acquired by a group of private equity firms. Still in the media sector, Readers Digest gained 10.4 percent this week to $16.74 after accepting a deal worth $2.4 billion.

Among homebuilders, DR Horton added 12.2 percent over the week to $25.22 eve though its profits fell by 51 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter.

The New York equities markets were higher in the afternoon on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.4 percent to 12,299.57 after going as high as 12,325.91 earlier in the session, a new all-time high. The Nasdaq Composite had added 0.2 percent to 2,447.67, while the S&P 500 was 0.3 percent higher to 1,400.89.

Dell Computer dropped 3.5 percent to $24.86 after it delayed its preliminary third-quarter report due to a Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into the company’s accounting practices. On the other hand, Hewlett Packard added 0.7 percent to $40.07 ahead of its quarterly report, due to be released after the close of trade.

Elsewhere among technology-related sectors, Applied Materials was 4.2 percent lower to $17.87 on a warning that sales will decline on the order of 5 to 10 percent. Internet search engine Google, however, added 0.8 percent to $495.80.

There was bids news in the media sector. Clear Channel Communications, the radio station operator, added 3.9 percent to $35.46 and went as high as $35.88 after it agreed to be acquired by a group of private equity firms for $19 billion. Meanwhile, Readers Digest added 7.8 percent to $16.69 after it agreed to be purchased by a group of investors.

In the retail sector, Sears dropped 5.4 percent to $169.51 after earnings were lower than had been anticipated.

The New York equities markets were higher at noon on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.9 percent higher to 12,176.54, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 2.3 percent to 2,384.64 and the S&P 500 had added 1.1 percent to 1,378.94.

Defense companies that saw losses right after Tuesday’s elections regained some of those declines later in the week but still ended the week below their starting levels. Raytheon fell 0.2 percent during the week to $48.90, while Lockheed Martin dropped 1 percent to $86.10 and Northrop Grumman was 1.8 percent lower to $64.73.

Health sectors were affected by the elections on concerns that their prices could be driven down by decisions from the new Democratic majority in Congress. Among the pharmaceuticals companies, Johnson & Johnson fell 3 percent to $65.80, while Pfizer declined 3.7 percent to $25.58 and Merck ended the week 4.9 percent lower to $42.88.

Wal-Mart was 2.2 percent lower on the week to $46.49 on the fears of investors that the new Congress could raise the minimum wage and move to regulate labor more closely.

Homebuilders saw declines as the housing market continued to suffer. Toll Brothers dropped 2.3 percent to $27.59, while DR Horton fell 2.4 percent on a downgrade from Merrill Lynch and Pulte Homes was 2.6 percent lower to $29.32.

Gainers on the week included Four Seasons Hotels, which added 28.3 percent to $81.97 after a private consortium of bidders offered $3.7 billion for the luxury hotel group. OSI Restaurant Partners was 21.6 percent higher to $39.45 after it accepted a $3 billion private bid.

Technology-related sectors were up in New York on Thursday but health care and pharmaceuticals companies were lower, resulting in mixed results on Wall Street at midday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.3 percent lower to 12,142.37, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.42 percent to 2,395.03 and the S&P 500 dropped 0.04 percent to 1,385.12.

In health sectors, Johnson & Johnson was 1.25 percent lower to $70.29 and Pfizer fell 1.8 percent to $26.14. HealthSouth was 6.1 percent lower to $20.65 after its report for the third quarter showed losses related to price pressure in all its units, while it had fewer patients in its acute-care hospital unit. Elsewhere, 3M was a bit lower to $79.24 on the news that it is selling its pharmaceuticals interests.

Cisco Systems added 7.3 percent to $26.93 on a report that its net income was $1.61 billion in the quarter. Computer maker Dell gained 2.8 percent to $24.85 after it said it will expand its customer call center in Ottawa, adding 1,000 employees. Apple Computer, meanwhile, was 1.64 percent higher to $83.80 on reported interest in its new iPod Shuffle.

The oil sector was higher on gains in the price of crude oil, with ExxonMobil and Chevron each adding 1.1 percent, to $74.64 and $70.29 respectively.

The media sector was mixed. News Corporation added 0.2 percent to $21.90 on a better than anticipated quarterly report, while Disney gained 1.2 percent to $33.48 ahead of its report, due later in the day. Viacom, however, was 2.2 percent lower to $38.81 after its third quarter report showed that profits were down by 16 percent in the third quarter.

The New York equities markets were lower during the day on Wednesday in reaction to election results that put control of the US House of Representatives in the hands of the Democratic Party for the first time in 12 years. Investors believed that some sectors of the business community would be subject to stricter regulation under the Democrats than they have been with a Republican majority in power.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2 percent lower to 12,135.16, while the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.08 percent to 2,373.99 and the S&P 500 fell 0.1 percent to 1,381.1.

Defense-related stocks saw declines. Boeing dropped 0.4 percent to $84.18, while Northrop Grumman lost 1.3 percent to $65.53, Lockheed Martin was 1.4 percent lower to $86.24, and Raytheon declined 2 percent to $48.70.

The pharmaceuticals sector was lower as well. Pfizer was 1.8 percent lower to $25.56, while Merck fell 3.5 percent to $44.29. On the other hand, biotech company StemCells added over 10 percent to $3.39 on the theory that it’s research into stem cell-based therapies for central nervous system diseases would get more support from a Democratic house than it has under the Republicans.

In the retail sector, Wal-Mart dropped 1 percent to $47.17 on investor concern that a Democratic House will put more pressure on the discount retailer on the issue of working conditions for its employees. Elsewhere in the sector, Federated Department stores fell 1.2 percent to $39.87 after it reported that it lost 1 cent per share in the third quarter.