New York markets were higher at midday on Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1.09 percent higher to 13,436.59, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.48 percent to 2,604.51 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.96 percent to 1,485.69.

Investor confidence was enhanced after Countrywide Financial (NSYE: CFC) said it has managed to secure $12 billion in credit, making it less likely that it would fall to the subprime crisis.

The Dow was up on gains in the fast food and automobile manufacturing sectors.

General Motors (NYSE: GM) and Ford Motor (NYSE: F) were both up after United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said he might okay a union-run trust fund for employee health care.

Ford added 34 cents to $7.85, while GM gained $2.38 to $32.62.

In the retail sector, Target (NYSE: TGT) was $1.37 higher to $64.09 after it said it would look at whether it will keep $7 billion in credit card receivables.

Fast food chain McDonald’s was up $2.94 to $54.14 after it said it would up its dividend by 50 percent.

Decliners on the day included chipmaker Intel (NAS: INTC; SEHK: 4335), which dropped 12 cents to $25.34 and media empire Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS), down 5 cents to $33.67.

New York equities markets were higher in early afternoon trade even though comments in a speech by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke did not mention interest rates.

Analysts and investors had been hoping that Mr. Bernanke would say something that would indicate what the Fed is planning on doing about interest rates when it meets next.

Confidence was also boosted by new Commerce Department data showing that the US trade deficit narrowed slightly, from $59.4 billion in June to $59.2 billion in July in the face of conventional wisdom that said it would widen.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.89 percent to 13,244.91, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.86 percent to 2,581.05 and the S&P 500 gained 0.72 percent to 1,462.17.

The Dow was helped by good sales news from fast food chain McDonalds (NYSE: MCD) when it said that global sales at restaurants open at least a year were up 8.1 percent in August.

McDonalds shares added $2.25 to $52.40.

The Nasdaq was helped by a big gain from biopharmaceutical group ImClone Systems (NAS: IMCL), which added $7.99 to $45.92 on the news that late-stage studies of the drug Erbitux has improved survival in lung-cancer patients.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY), also involved in the development of the drug, added 31 cents to $28.31.

Most railroads were higher after broker comments that a recent judicial decision on coal rates have taken some regulatory and legislative pressures off the sector.

The decision found in favor of Burlington Northern Santa Fe (NYSE: BNI) in two cases where the railroad was accused of charging too much to transport coal.

Burlington Northern added 70 cents to $80.92.

Kansas City Northern (NYSE: KSU) was up 75 cents to $31.16 and Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) gained 91 cents to $50.01, while Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) was $1.71 higher to $107.58.

However, CSX (NYSE: CSX) was 48 cents lower to $38.81.

The New York equities markets were lower at midday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.69 percent lower to 13,858.80, while the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.54 percent to 2,676.18 and the S&P 500 was down 0.69 percent to 1,530.96.

Part of the declines came as quarterly reports disappointed.

In the chemicals sector, DuPont (NYSE: DDPRA, DDPRB, DD) reported that profits did not grow in the second quarter even as sales were better overseas.

DuPont had dropped $2.96 to $50.30 by mid-session.

Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) fell $1.32 to $36.86 as it reported profits lower than the same time last year.

Fast food chain McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) was 33 cents lower to $52.17 after it reported a losing quarter on a charge growing out of its sale of Latin American outlets.

AT&T (NYSE: T) was 18 cents higher to $40.21 after it said that its earnings were up by 61 percent in the second quarter, but reported that fewer Apple iPhone numbers than had been anticipated were activated following the new phone’s release.

Apple (NAS: AAPL) dropped $3.88 to $139.82 on the news of fewer iPhone activations and ahead of its quarterly report, due on Wednesday.

Companies exposed to bad loans were lower.

American Express (NYSE: AXP) dropped $1.94 to $62.72 after it reported an increase in write-downs on bad loans in the second quarter.

Meanwhile, mortgage lender Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) fell $3.08 to $30.98 after it reported significantly lower profits in the second quarter and cut its earnings forecast.

The New York equities markets were mixed at midday on Thursday on news from corporate earnings reports and new data from the Philadelphia Fed that showed its manufacturing index down 0.7 percent in October when an advance had been predicted. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.15 percent higher to 12,011, while the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.1 percent to 2,339.57 and the S&P 500 was just 0.01 percent lower to 1,365.

Among gainers on the day were Apple Computer, which added 6.35 percent to $79.26 on higher net income on sales of both Macintosh computers and iPod music players. Also up were Yahoo, 1.1 percent higher to $23.24 and UPS, which added 4.23 percent to $75.54 on higher earnings. AT&T was up 2.9 percent to $33.89 on an upgrade from Lehman Brothers.

The semiconductors sector was significantly lower. Cypress Semiconductor was 9.1 percent lower to $17.24 on the announcement that is no longer thinking of selling. Advanced Micro Devices dropped 10.4 percent to $21.72 after it said Wednesday that its gross margins were down. AMD added, however, that it expects higher demand and sales in the fourth quarter. Intel declined a lesser 1.1 percent to $20.88 on quarterly earnings that were lower.

Other losers on the session included McDonalds, down 1.4 percent to $40.90 despite meeting its revised guidance. Citigroup dropped 0.8 percent to $49.79 on lower net income in its third quarter. In addition, General Electric was down 0.9 percent to $35.56 on the news that its NBC Universal entertainment unit will make cost-cutting moves.

Earnings reports helped the New York equities markets to advances by mid-session on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5 percent to 11,455.83, while the Nadsaq Composite was 0.9 percent higher to 2,192.96 an the S&P 500 had added 0.6 percent to 1,306.90.

Flat-panel television sales helped Best Buy to second quarter earnings that were higher than had been expected. The electronics retailer was 5.8 percent higher to $50.54. These results, with their implication that consumers are spending more than had been assumed, helped out the homebuilding sector. Pulte added 4.5 percent to $30.83, while DR Horton gained 4.7 percent to $23.41.

McDonald’s reported a 6 percent rise in sales in August, helping its shares to add 2.3 percent to $37.96, its highest level in six years.

Semiconductors were up after a sector-wide upgrade from Credit Suisse. Broadcom was 4.2 percent higher to $27.58, while Applied Materials, which makes chip making equipment, added 4.4 percent to $17.15.

In the banking sector, Goldman Sachs was 3.3 percent higher to $156.01 even though profits fell in its third quarter. Despite the decline, profits still were higher than analysts had expected.

Positive results did not help Kroger, however. Even though the supermarket chain said that earnings were up in its second quarter, profit margins were lower than some analysts had expected, sending shares 4.2 percent lower to $23.07.

The New York equities markets were mixed but very close to unchanged on Tuesday even though consumer sentiment was reported to have reached a two-year low in September.

That report was the first indication of what effect the recent bad weather in the Gulf Coast area has had on what consumers in the United States are thinking.

Some analysts were not surprised at the news, and at least one noted that the worst performers this year on the S&P 500 have been those that depend on discretionary spending. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.1 percent on the day to 10,456.21, while the Nasdaq composite lost 0.2 percent to 2,116.42 and the S&P ended the day flat at 1,215.66.

Retailer Wal-Mart was down just less than 0.1 percent to $43.10 and Home Depot lost 0.1 percent to $38.39. In the fast food sector, McDonald’s declined 0.8 percent to $33.01.

Reports that new home sales were off in August resulted in losses in the home construction sector. DR Horton lost 0.2 percent to $35.50, Centex was down 0.8 percent to $63.40, KB Home fell 1.9 percent to $72, and Toll Brothers declined by 1.6 percent to $43.28.

In the oil sector, ExxonMobil was flat at $64.62 on a downgrade by JP Morgan. Chevron lost 0.1 percent to $64.18 even though it was the recipient of an upgrade, also by JP Morgan.

DVD-rental chain Movie Gallery was down 13.9 percent on the day to $11.04 after it said it would suspend dividends for the quarter in favor of paying down debt. Rival Blockbuster was also down, by 1.3 percent to $4.51, while Netflix gained 1.4 percent to $24.30.