At mid-afternoon in New York on Thursday, the equities markets were mixed ahead of the monthly report on employment, due on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.1 percent to 12,667.03, while the S&P 500 had gained 0.3 percent to 1,442.45, and the Russell 2000 index of small and mid-caps was 0.5 percent higher to 804.57. Only the Nasdaq Composite was lower, falling 0.1 percent to 2,461.61.

The Nasdaq was hurt by results from Google, which lost almost $9 per share to $492.69 by midday even though it reported a substantial increase in profits. Elsewhere in computer-related sectors, Dell Computer did better after it reported that chairman Michael Dell had returned to his role as chief executive. Even though it said that it wouldn’t make estimated profits and sales in the fourth quarter, Dell added 0.7 percent to $24.39.

ExxonMobil provided what was probably the biggest talking point of the day as it reported that while profits were down 4 percent in the fourth quarter, profits for the full year were at $39.5 billion, the most ever reported by a US company, on revenues of $377.64 billion. Exxon shares added 1 percent to $74.82.

In a related sector, Archer Daniels Midland, which produces ethanol among other activities, added 10.7 percent to $35.43 after it reported profits were up 20 percent.

In the securities sector, Lehman Brothers added 2.4 percent to $84.22 after it announced that it has raised its dividend by 25 percent and upped its buy-back plan.

Wall Street was up at midday on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.32 percent higher to 12,573.46, the Nasdaq Composite up 1.09 percent to 2,457.80, and the S&P 500 adding 0.41 percent to 1,433.79. Positive earnings reports from both Yahoo and Sun Microsystems helped the gains, while the previous evening’s State of the Union address from President George W. Bush didn’t seem to have much impact at all on investors’ activities.

After Mr. Bush proposed an expansion in health care coverage in the speech last night, health benefits insurer Aetna dropped 47 cents to $41.71. In a related sector, drug maker Pfizer added 22 cents to $26.59.

ExxonMobil dropped 22 cents to $74.26 after an announcement of higher crude oil, gasoline, and distillate inventories again last week. Alternative energy producers were lower as well, after posting gains before the president’s address. Ethanol maker Xethanol Corp. dropped 17 cents to $2.90, while Archer Daniels Midland fell $1.06 to $31.57.

Sun Microsystems added 43 cents to $6.09 after increased revenues gave the manufacturer of server and storage products its first quarterly profit in several years. Meanwhile, Yahoo gained $2.03 to $28.99 on fourth quarter profits that were higher than had been anticipated. But Advanced Micro Devices dropped $1.39 to $16.12 reported losses in the fourth quarter, which were blamed on flat sales of server chips.

The New York equities markets were mixed but close to unchanged at midday on Tuesday as investors waited for the earnings season to get serious. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1 percent lower to 11,851.89, while the Nasdaq Compsite was nearly flat - up only 0.52 of a point - to 2,312.29 and the S&P 500 had added just 0.1 percent to 1,351.50.

Homebuilders were up as JP Morgan issued upgrades on DR Horton and Toll Brothers. Horton added 5 percent to $25.04 even though it said that new home orders were down by 25 percent in its fourth quarter after JP Morgan raised its recommendation from “neutral” to “overweight”. The broker upgraded Toll Brothers from “underweight” to “neutral”, sending the homebuilder 5.5 percent higher to $30.40. The upgrades also helped KB Home, which gained 3.7 percent to $46.44 despite warning that profits in the third quarter would likely drop by 32 percent.

Supermarkets were higher as well. Safeway added 2.9 percent to $29.59, while Supervalu was 4.6 percent higher to $32.42 on better than expected third-quarters earnings and an upgraded full-year earnings forecast.

With oil prices dropping again, ethanol manufacturer Archer Daniels Midland dropped 2.3 percent to $37.60. On the other hand, Nabors Industries, the oil services group, added 5.4 percent to $29.59 on rumors that it was a buyout target.

In the semiconductors sector, Qualcomm dropped 2.8 percent to $37.27 on a ruling from a judge at the International Trade Commission that it had violated Broadcom patents on a chip and a phone. The judge did not, however, ban import of the phone as Broadcom had requested.

The New York equities markets were mixed at midday on Monday on news from several sectors. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were lower, by 0.1 percent each to 11,497.13 and 1,314.15 respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.2 percent to 2,222.94.

Crude oil futures that fell below $60 per barrel sent the oil sector lower. Marathon Oil dropped 2.7 percent to $69.25, while Pride International, an oil services group, fell 3 percent to $25.46. Archer Daniels Midland declined 4.2 percent to $36.85 on comments from an investment commentator that ethanol would never seriously challenge oil as a fuel.

Metals prices were also lower, sending shares in miners tumbling. Coeur d’Alene fell 2.8 percent to $4.44, while Phelps Dodge was 3.1 percent lower to $80.16.

The tobacco sector saw losses when a federal court judge in New York let a class-action suit representing users of “light” cigarettes proceed in the courts. Reynolds American fell 2.7 percent to $60.36, while Altria dropped 4.3 percent to $78.82.

Drug retailers continued to decline after last week’s announcement by Wal-Mart that it was starting a pilot program to sell generic prescription drugs at $4 for a thirty-day supply. CVS declined 4.7 percent to $31.48, while Walgreen’s dropped 4.8 percent to $44.63 even though it said it saw profits increase by 25 percent in it’s fiscal forth quarter.

Declines in the oil and mining sectors sent Wall Street lower by midday on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq Composite, and the S&P 500 were all 0.1 percent lower at mid-session, with the Dow at 11,384.27, the Nasdaq at 2,163.86, and the S&P down to 1,297.32.

Concerns that economic growth around the world could slow sent metals prices lower, hurting miners. Newmont Mining was off by 4.3 percent to $46.11 and Barrick Gold was 4.5 percent lower to $29.97, while Freeport McMoran dropped 4.9 percent to $55.44 and Phelps Dodge fell 5.4 percent to $86.16.

Steelmakers were also hurt by dropping commodities prices. US Steel was 4 percent lower to $57.65 and Nucor dropped 5 percent to $47.19. Aluminium producer Alcoa also saw declines, falling 4.5 percent to $27.39.

Oil prices were down for the sixth straight session as OPEC declined to lower production levels and Iran agreed to temporarily halt its uranium enrichment activities. ExxonMobil was 2.5 percent lower to $65.17, while Chevron dropped 3.7 percent to $61.83. Ethanol manufacturer Archier Daniels Midland was also affected, falling 2.8 percent to $38.50.

Dell Computer was also lower at midday after it said it would suspend its share buyback and delay its quarterly report because financial regulators are looking at its records. Dell was 1.4 percent lower to $21.34. Also the victim of bad news, Genentech dropped 6.3 percent to $76.88 after it said that the Food and Drug Administration had asked for more information about the safety of its Avastin cancer drug before it would approve it for use by breast cancer patients.

Afternoon trade on Monday saw the New York equities markets mixed as crude oil and commodities prices dropped and investors were still worried about inflation. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 percent to 11,342.25, but the Nasdaq Composite had declined 0.9 percent to 2,223.57 and the S&P 500 was 0.5 percent lower to 1,285.29.

With copper down 9 percent and the price of gold back below $700 per troy ounce, miners saw declines on the day. Newmont Mining fell 3.7 percent to $54.22, while aluminium producer Alcan was down to $52.98, a drop of 5.7 percent. Additionally, the price of crude oil was down almost 2 percent, which sent oil company ConocoPhillips down 3.5 percent to $62.92. Oilfield services company BJ Services lost 5.2 percent to $35.55.

Ethanol producer Archer Daniels Midland was also hurt by declining oil prices. ADM shares declined by 3.3 percent to $42.64.

In the retail sector, discounter Target lost 4.5 percent to $49.85, its lowest level in a year. Despite reporting that quarterly earnings were up 12 percent, investors were disappointed by lower gross margins.

Pharmaceuticals companies did better, with the sector as a whole up by 1.1 percent. Abbott Laboratories added 2.4 percent to $42.42, while Merck was up 1.5 percent to $34.79. The sector was helped by an announcement from AstraZeneca that it will purchase Cambridge Antibody Technology, a UK biotechnology company.

By the middle of the trading day on Friday, New York equities markets seemed poised to notch losses for both the day and the week after sell-offs in the wake of another hike in interest rates on Wednesday. Investors were apparently worried after comments from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke that seemed to indicate more rate hikes to come.

At mid-session on Friday the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.4 percent on the day so far and 1 percent for the week to 11,458.47. The Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.7 percent to noon and 3.6 percent on the week to 2,257.68. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 had fallen 0.4 percent so far for the day and 2 percent during the week to 1,299.83.

The semiconductor sector was down over the week. Intel managed to avoid the worst of the declines after it announced that it will spin off its flash-memory division, but it still dropped 1 percent during the week. Losses elsewhere were greater, with Micron down 6.7 percent to $15.90 and Advanced Micro Devices osing 7.1 percent to $31.97.

Other computer-related stocks fell as well. Cisco Systems lost 6 percent on the week to $20.44 on worse than expected quarterly results. Dell also reported that its profits would be lower in the quarter, finishing the week 4.8 percent lower at $24.45 despite a gain of 2.9 percent on Monday.

Ethanol maker Archer Daniels Midland saw gains on the week, with shares up 9.5 percent to $44.58. This took its advances to 25 percent since the end of April and 87 percent since the beginning of the year.

In New York on Thursday, equities markets were up mid-way through the trading day as several retailers issued good quarterly earnings reports. These reports overcame worries over new data releases that tended to increase the likelihood of further interest rate hikes to offset pressures toward inflation.

At midday the Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 0.4 percent to 11,450.71, the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.8 percent to 2322.16, and the S&P 500 had added 0.4 percent to 1,312.85.

Earnings reports from the retail sector were led by Whole Foods, a supermarket chain that specializes in organic foods, which saw a 27 percent hike in profits in the quarter, ahead of predictions, and an increased sales outlook for the year. Shares in Whole Foods were up by 11.7 percent to $69.42. Other retailers with good reports included Talbots, which added 8.37 percent to $25.50, and Abercrombie and Fitch, up 2.3 percent to $61.75.

In the transport sector, Expeditors International gained 18.4 percent to $104.18 after it raised its divident by over 40 percent and said that its earnings per share were 20 percent above what had been forecast. Federal Express also saw a gain, adding 2.6 percent to $117.13. These helped the Dow Jones Transportation index, which was up 3.4 percent so far during the session and has added 17 percent so far this year.

Apple Computer has now gained back half of the 31 percent in share price that it lost in the first quarter of the year and was up 1.4 percent so far in the session to $72.15.

Among the days losers, Archer Daniels Midland dropped 5.3 percent to $41.01 on a downgrade to “neutral” on sustainability concerns. Before the loss the company, which makes ethanol among other activities, had added 21 percent since last week and 77 on the year so far.

The New York equities markets were up at midday on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.5 percent to 11,400.12, the Nasdaq Composite fractionally higher at 2,311.13, and the S&P 500 0.4 percent higher to 1,310.04. New corporate earnings reports helped the markets recover from losses late in the day Monday after a report that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke felt that the media had misinterpreted the testimony he gave before Congress last week.

Utilities helped the S&P, taking its Utilities Index 1.1 percent higher. Texas Utilities was up 8.2 percent to $53.99 on a reported 37 percent gain in net income in the first quarter. New Jersey’s Public Service Enterprise gained 1.4 percent to $62.81.

Alternative fuels were also up on the day. Archer Daniels Midland, which makes ethanol among other activities, was up 9.1 percent to $41.47 in very heavy trading after it reported better than expected earnings in its third quarter. ADM shares have gained 13.5 percent so far this week and 65 percent since January. Another ethanol producer, Pacific Ethanol, added 6.7 percent by mid-session, to $36.27.

Homebuilders, however, were down as new figures showed pending home sales at a two-year low. Toll Brothers declined by 2.7 percent to $30.33, while Hovnavian dropped 7 percent to $36.08 on a drop in earnings.

At midday on Monday, the New York equities markets were up on new economic data that came in higher than expected as well as continued stronger-than-predicted earnings results. Hints that inflationary pressures are rising did not seem to worry investors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 percent to 11,403.24 at mid-session, while the Nasdaq composite had added 0.1 percent to 2,323.81 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.2 percent to 1,313.04.

Ethanol producer Archer Daniels Midland was up 4 percent to $37.79, mostly on the fact that more and more ethanol is being added to gasoline as well as on government attempts to promote the use of alternative fuels. ADM is up more than 50 percent since the beginning of the year.

Chevron, meanwhile, added 1 percent to $61.61after its report that it saw an increase of 48 percent in net income in the first quarter, partly due to its purchase of Unocal.

In the retail sector, Wal-Mart gained 3 percent to $46.37 on its report of a 6.8 percent gain in same-store sales in April over the same period last year.

Tractor-maker Agco was up 12.9 percent to $26.73 after reporting a decline in quarterly profits that was smaller than had been predicted. The news helped other farm-machinery manufacturers, with John Deere adding 32.7 percent and CNH up by 5.8 percent.