Wall Street was lower at midday on Friday as quarterly reports from various sectors disappointed.

The Dow Jones Industrial average was down 1.27 percent to 13,713.05, while the Nasdaq Composite had fallen 1.14 percent to 2,767.32 and the S&P 500 was down 1.12 percent to 1,522.82.

The exception to the generally poor quarterly reports was Google (NAS: GOOG; LSE: GGEA), which added $11.72 to $651.34 after it said profits were up by 46 percent in the third quarter.

Elsewhere, manufacturer 3M (NYSE: MMM) dropped $6.25 to $88.48 even though profits were up 7 percent in the quarter and it raised its full-year forecast after sales did not live up to expectations.

Construction equipment manufacturer Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) was down $2.85 to $74.81 after it lowered its full-year outlook even though profits were up 21 percent in the quarter.

In the banking sector, Wachovia (NYSE: WB) reported that profits were down 10 percent in the third quarter, sending shares 83 cents lower to $47.31 at mid-session.

ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) was down 1.1 percent to $93.99.

Wall Street equities markets were mixed at midday on Friday but looked poised to close higher for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2 percent lower at noon to 12,646.20 but still 1.3 percent higher for the whole week. The Nasdaq Composite was 0.1 percent higher at mid-session at 2,470.93, a gain of 1.5 percent on the week, while the S&P 500 was even on the day so far but up 1.7 for the week at 1,445.75. The Russell 2000 index of mid-caps was 2.7 percent higher on the week at lunchtime, having breached the 800 level for the first time in its history.

Bids news was in focus. Bristol Myers Squibb added 9.4 percent over the week to $28.67 on bids talk, while newsprint producers Abitibi-Consolidated and Bowater announced that they would merge. The announcement sent Abitibi 20.4 percent higher to $3.18, while Bowater gained 24.3 percent to $27.53.

US Airways withdrew its bid for Delta Air Lines, which is currently in bankruptcy protection. The bid was rescinded after some of Delta’s unsecured creditors objected to the deal. US Airways added 10.3 percent on the week to $57.50, helped by a quarterly report that showed it had returned to profitability in the fourth quarter.

Earnings news also had an effect on the markets this week. Biopharmaceuticals company Gilead Sciences gained 13.2 percent over the week to $71 on a better than expected earnings report, while Boeing gained 5.9 percent on the week to $90.48. But just doing better than had been anticipated did not necessarily mean gains. While it gained 1.7 percent during the week, Amazon was 3.2 percent lower to $37.47 on concern over margins even though it beat estimates. Meanwhile, 3M dropped 6.1 percent to $73.92 even though it did better than expected when it said that slow growth in the world economy could hurt its results this year.

Wall Street was higher at mid-afternoon on Tuesday as the reports period accelerated and produced mixed results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2 percent higher to 12,518.74, while the Nasdaq Composite had also added 0.2 percent to 2,446. The S&P 500 was up 0.45 percent to 1,426.95.

US Steel, 3M, Proctor & Gamble, and Colgate-Palmolive all reported quarterly results that were higher than had been anticipated. US Steel added 3 percent to $79.17 on its results, while Colgate-Palmolive gained 0.7 percent to $67.15. On the other hand, 3M dropped 4.6 percent to $75.33 when it warned that a slowing global economy could mean reduced results in 2007.

UPS said that its results met expectations with earnings of $1.04 per share, but it dropped 3 percent to $71.40 when it warned that growth could slow down this year.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck reported profits down 58 percent in the fourth quarter, missing expectations and falling 1.6 percent to $44.79 on the session so far.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange was 0.7 percent lower to $572.05 after it said that it missed estimates due to trading margins that were lower and even though it reported quarterly profits that were up 33 percent.

The New York equities markets ended the week mixed as the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.04 percent to 11,347.45, but the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.83 percent to 2,342.86 and the S&P 500 dropped 0.01 percent to 1,311.28.

Quarterly earnings reports helped a number of companies during the week. 3M, which makes Post-It notes, was up 5 percent to $85.02 this week on a report of higher earnings. In the internet search engine sector, Yahoo added 6.9 percent during the week to $33.27 even though it’s earnings were down from the same quarter last year, when revenues and adjusted earnings were up to predictions. UBS raised Yahoo’s target share price from $39 to $42.

Google, meanwhile added 10 percent over the week to $442.56 after it reported that revenues had grown by 100 percent. This earned it several target share price hikes and Merrill Lynch upgraded the search engine from “neutral” to “buy”.

Still in internet-related companies, Ebay dropped 9.3 percent on the week to $35 after it did not improve its forecast for 2006.

Computer-maker Dell dropped 4 percent on Friday and 7.5 percent during the week to $27.15 on a downgrade from “buy” to “sell” from Citigroup.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, General Motors was up 8 percent on the week to $22.03 when it reported fewer losses in the quarter than had been expected, indicating to some analysts that it is recovering from recent troubles. Others, however, said that while production had increased, GM’s market share was declining. Elsewhere in the sector, Ford Motor dropped 6.3 percent on Friday on the report of a $1.2 billion loss in the first quarter. On the week, however, Ford added 1.4 percent and closed the week at $7.45.

The New York equities markets saw advances on Tuesday, fueled by inflation that appears to be under control, by optimism based on first quarter earnings reports, and by falling crude oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day up 0.5 percent to 11,203.85, while the Nadsaq Composite gained 0.4 percent to 2,345.36 and the S&P 500 added 0.6 percent to 1,305.93.

Banks were up on the day. Bank of America advanced by 1.4 percent to $46.29. Wells Fargo gained 0.8 percent to $64.87. JPMorgan added 1.6 percent to $42.27.

The Dow was helped out by 3M, which makes Scotch tape and post-it notes. 3M was up over 1.5 percent to $77, gaining after it said it might sell its pharmaceuticals business. Machinery manufacturer Caterpillar also helped the Dow, gaining 2.5 percent to $75.30 after it was reported that it could receive orders worth up to $5 billion from Canadian oil and mining companies.

Internet company Google added 3.8 percent to $404.34, going above the $400 level for the first time since February.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck was up 0.2 percent to $35.48 when it revised its quarterly guidance up.

The telecommunications sector saw declines, however, after equipment makers were downgraded as a sector from “positive” to “neutral”. JDS Uniphase, lost 4.2 percent to $3.91, while Ciena dropped 5.9 percent to $4.91.