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.

A falling transportation sector led the New York equities markets lower by midday on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 percent to 11,018.64, while the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 each had dropped by 0.2 percent, to 2,058.46 and 1,258.22 respectively.

United Parcel Service fell 14.5 percent to $68.44, its worst ever one-day performance. The decline came after its quarterly report did not meet expectations and it said that full-year earnings would only reach the low end of what has been forecast. The problems of Ups dragged the rest of the sector down as well. Federal Express dropped 2.7 percent to $107.50, while Burlington Northern Santa Fe declined by 4.5 percent to $66.67 and Expeditors International was 4.8 percent lower to $46.

The telecommunications sector, on the other hand, was up after AT&T said that its second quarter earnings were up by 81 percent. AT&T gained 4.4 percent to $28.99, while BellSouth added 4.8 percent to $37.95. BellSouth is scheduled to be purchased by AT&T later in the year.

In the technology sector, Sandisk added 14.8 percent to $37.95 after it reported that strong sales of memory cards for mobile phones sent profits up 36 percent in the quarter. Meanwhile, Texas Instruments reported that its earnings were up by 27 percent in the quarter, sending its shares 4.3 percent higher to $29.03.

BJ Services added 5.5 percent to $32.76 on third-quarter profits that were up by 86 percent.

The New York equities markets had a mixed week on concerns about inflation and interest rates, although new employment data released on Friday pointed to continuing economic growth. At midday on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1 percent to 11,083.46, the Nasdaq Composite had gained 0.5 percent to 2,261.64, and the S&P 500 had risen by 0.8 percent to 1,281.90. However, this brought weekly numbers to a 0.5 percent gain for the Dow, but losses of 0.4 percent for the S&P and 1.8 percent for the Nasdaq.

Internet search engine Google lost 10.7 percent on the week to $337.69 after a snafu saw an internal financial forecast posted on the company’s website.

The telecommunications sector was mixed after AT&T’s bid for BellSouth led to speculation about more consolidation in the sector. AT&T lost 3.3 percent for the week to $27.06, but BellSouth gained 9.5 percent to $34.45 on the bid news and on an upgrade from Bear Stearns. Elsewhere in the sector, Verizon was up 1.8 percent, Alltel gained 1.8 percent to $34.17, and Sprint Nextel grew by 2.7 percent to $66.03.

Technology stocks were down on the week. Intel dropped 1.8 percent to $19.96. Texas Instruments fell 3.5 percent to $31.16. National Semiconductor declined by 5.2 percent to $27.80, and Advanced Micro Devices was down 6.7 percent to $36.88.

General Motors had a good week, gaining 12.1 percent to $21.53.

The New York equities markets were mixed at midday on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite up slightly but the S&P 500 down a bit on losses in the energy sector.

The Dow was up 0.1 percent by mid-session to 11,028.71. The Nasdaq had risen by 0.2 percent to 2,306.96. The S&P, however, was down 0.1 percent to 1,286.58.

Mergers and acquisitions provided much of the day’s activity. AT&T lost 1.4 percent to $27.61 on a weekend announcement that it will purchase BellSouth for $67 billion, making AT&T the world’s largest telecommunications company. The loss came despite an upgrade from “market perform” to “outperform” by Wachovia Securities. BellSouth, with an upgrade from Bear Stearns, gained 11 percent to $34.72.

Elsewhere in the sector, Verizon dropped 0.1 percent to $33.54. Qwest Communications, which is seen as another takeover target, gained 4.6 percent to $6.98. Alltel was up 4 percent to $66.86, while Sprint Nextel rose by 3.2 percent to $24.97.

General Motors was up 4.3 percent to $20.04 on the news that Suzuki Motor has agreed to buy out its 17 percent of the company for $2 billion, money GM will use in its restructuring efforts.

General Electric, meanwhile, agreed to purchase iVillage. GE was up 0.5 percent on the announcement to $33.22 and iVillage gained 5 percent to $8.38.