Wall Street was up in early afternoon trade on Monday after declines earlier in the day.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.17 percent to 13,545.43, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.81 percent to 2,747.17 and the the S&P 500 was 0.23 percent higher to 1,504.04.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck (NYSE: MRK) added $1.21 to $54.32 after it reported that profits were up by 62 percent in the third quarter, boosted by ales of asthma and allergy drugs, blood pressure medicines, cholesterol drugs and a number of vaccines, including one for the prevention of cervical cancer.

The only bad news was that the drug maker still faces liability over its Vioxx anti-inflammatory drug which was taken off the market after being implicated in cardiovascular events in patients who took it.

Elsewhere in the sector, Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP) dropped $4.29 to $28.42 after turning in a quarterly report that was not up to investors’ expectations.

Meanwhile Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) was 3 cents lower to $24.04.

Home builders were doing well in early afternoon trade, with several builders recording gains in the near-7 percent to nearly 8.5 percent range.

Beazer Homes (NYSE: BZH) was up 76 cents to $9.82, while DR Horton (NYSE: DHI) was 88 cents higher to $12.83 and Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE: HOV) had gained 89 cents to $11.44.

Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) added 94 cents to $14.62 and Lennar (NYSE: LEN) was up $1.39 to $21.08, while Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) jumped $1.56 to $22.08.

The New York markets were up in early afternoon trade.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.52 percent higher to 13,374.73, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.23 percent to 2,612.03 and the S&P 500 was 0.33 percent higher to 1,477.21.

Retailers were higher after Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), JC Penney (NYSE: JCP), and Target (NYSE: TGT) all said sales were higher than had been expected.

Wal-Mart added 1 percent to $42.86, while JC Penney gained 0.64 percent to $65.99 and Target was 2.13 percent higher to $63.20.

The pharmaceuticals/biotechnology sector was up on new figures and a court ruling.

Merck (NYSE: MRK) added 2.2 percent to $50.50 after the New Jersey Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling that allowed insurers looking for reimbursement for past spending on Vioxx to claim class-action status.

Meanwhile Biogen Idec (NAS: BIIB) was 7 percent higher to $67.26 on a long-term earnings forecast that was higher than analysts had anticipated.

The oil sector was mixed even though crude oil prices were higher. ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) added 1 percent to $88.07 and ConocoPhillips was up 1.8 percent to $83.62, but Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO) dropped 1.25 percent to $70.09 a day after it said it would raise capital spending in order to make improvements at several refineries in the United States and Canada.

At just before 2 pm in New York, Wall Street was in positive territory for the day, helped by the Fed‘s cut in the discount rate.

Most analysts now expect that the Fed will cut the benchmark interest rate when it meets in September, while some investors hope they do it even sooner than that.

Some analysts said that if the cut in the discount rate returns confidence to the markets, the Fed might not need to cut the benchmark rate, but the Fed’s move on the discount rate was seen as evidence that the Fed is prepared to act if the markets don’t become more stable soon.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1.25 percent higher to 13,006.49, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 1.67 percent to 2,491.92 and the S&P 500 was up 1.88 percent to 1,437.77.

Mortgage lender Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC), which saw big declines on Thursday after drawing down a multi-billion dollar credit line to be able to stay in operation, was up $2.23 in afternoon trade on Friday to $21.18.

Banks were also higher.

Citigroup (NYSE: C) had gained $1.57 to $49.12, while Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) added $1.88 to $51.73 and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) was $3.98 higher to $173.83.

Housebuilder DR Horton (NYSE: DHI) was also higher, adding 63 cents to $16.54 after Thursday’s data on new home construction came in lower than expected for July.

The telecommunications sector was mixed. Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) was 11 cents higher to $40.34 and Qwest Communications (NYSE: Q) had gained 22 cents to $8.94, but Sprint-Nextel (NSYE: S) was trading even at $18.20 and Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) had dropped 6 cents to $10.53.

Results were also mixed in the pharmaceuticals sector.

Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) was 53 cents higher to $23.92, but Merck (NYSE: MRK) was down 11 cents to $49.35 while Bristol-Myers Squibb had dropped 27 cents to $27.10.

Wall Street was higher in early afternoon trade Monday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 0.63 percent to 13,264.5, while the Nasdaq Composite was 0.29 percent higher to 2,518.56 and the S&P 400 was up 0.69 percent to 1,442.9.

The Russell 2000 index had gained 0.06 percent to 755.84.

Trade in shares of American Home Mortgage (NYSE: AHM) were halted after it had lost most of its market capitalization in the past few sessions, laid off nearly all its employees last Friday and today filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware.

Elsewhere in the sector, however, Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) added 47 cents to $25.48.

Investment banker Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC) dropped $3.32 to $105.03 in the wake of last week’s reduced ratings outlook from Standard & Poor’s and after it fired an executive over the weekend.

On the other hand, other members of the financial services sector were higher.

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) was 35 cents higher to $47.35, while JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) added 65 cents to $44.30, Citigroup (NYSE: C) gained 82 cents to $46.54, Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) was up $1.42 to $34.23 and Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) added $2.02 to $72.07.

There were also gains in the pharmaceuticals sector, where Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) was 7 cents higher to $28.07, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) gained 39 cents to $23.90 and Merck (NYSE: MRK) was 80 cents higher to $51.09.

Merck’s gains came on a broker upgrade.

In the retail sector, Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) added $1.03 to $46.55 after it said that it is putting together a joint business-to-business venture in India.

In New York on Friday the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down again by more than 100 points in midday trade, falling 0.96 percent to 13,344.56, while the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.89 percent to 2,576.32 and the S&P 500 was 1.12 percent lower to 1,466.1.

The declines came even though the Commerce Department had released a report calling the US economy strong in the second quarter, with the GDP up at an annual rate of 3.4 percent, better than the 3.3 percent growth that had been expected.

A gain to 90.4 by the Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index in July didn’t seem to impress investors, either.

The oil sector was lower after Thursday’s quarterly report from ExxonMobil (NSYE: XOM), which showed profits off from predictions.

ExxonMobil dropped 2.2 percent to $86.24.

Chevron, which reported profits up in the most recent quarter, was also lower, falling 2.5 percent to $85.31.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK; LSE: GSK) was down 2.79 percent to $49.80 ahead of a Monday meeting with the US Food and Drug Administration to look at the safety of its Avandia diabetes drug, which has been implicated in increased risks of heart problems to patients.

GlaxoSmithKline claims that Avandia is as safe as other diabetes drugs and that the study which found the risks was flawed.

Elsewhere in the sector, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) had dropped 0.41 percent to $24.05 while Merck (NYSE: MRK) was 2.69 percent lower to $50.57.

On the other hand, shoe manufacturer Crocs Inc (NAS: CROX) hit a new record high share prices when it went as high as $59.71 before falling back to $55.25 in midday trade, a gain of 9.2 percent on its report that earnings tripled in the second quarter and on an increased full-year forecast.

Wall Street was higher in midday trade on Wednesday after an up-and-down morning on nerves from Tuesday’s declines and news that existing home sales were down by 3.8 percent in June.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.38 percent higher at mid-session to 13,769.71 after gaining as much as 100 points at one point and losing up to 30 points at another in morning trade.

The Nasdaq Composite was 2,647.27, up 0.28 percent, while the S&P 500 had added 0.36 percent to 1,516.51.

There were notable gains, however.

Pharmaceutical group Merck (NYSE: MRK) added $1.61 to $53.33 after it said it would buy NovaCardia (NAS: NCAR), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical firm that specializes in cardiovascular disease.

In the aerospace sector, Boeing (NYSE: BA; TYO: 7661) gained $3.56 to $107.36 after it reported that it earned $1.35 per share in the second quarter, higher than the earnings of $1.16 per share that had been anticipated.

The internet sector was mixed after Amazon.com (NAS: AMZN) said that its earnings in the second quarter were 19 cents per share, up from 5 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

The report brought upgrades - from “neutral to “outperform” from Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS; SWX: CSGN) and from “accumulate” to “buy” from ThinkEquity, which also raised Amazon’s target share price from $80 to $105.

Amazon was up $17.75 to $87 in early afternoon trade.

Other gainers in the sector included Yahoo (NAS: YHOO), which gained 9 cents to $24.93 and eBay (NAS: EBAY), which was 56 cents higher to $33.62.

Google (NAS: GOOG; LSE: GGEA), however, dropped $3.99 to $510.01.

Wall Street was higher in midday trade on Monday as quarterly reports and mergers and acquisition news were in focus.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.81 percent higher to 13,963.34, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.54 percent to 2,702.01 and the S&P 500 gained 0.76 percent to 1,545.79.

The Russell 3000 index of small and mid-caps was up 0.52 percent to 840.82.

Credit card provider American Express (NYSE: AXP) was 35 cents higher to $64.86 ahead of the release of its second quarter report, due after the close of trade on the day.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck (NYSE: MRK) said that it had seen its earnings increase by 12 percent in the quarter, sending it $3.90 higher to $52.92.

Elsewhere in the sector, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) gained 33 cents to $25.23 and Bristol-Myers Squibb (NSYE: BMY) added 60 cents to $32.14, but Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP) dropped 12 cents to $31.37.

In purchase news, offshore drilling contractor Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG) and GlobalSantaFe Corp. (NYSE: GSF) announced that they have made a deal to merge.

Transocean was $6.28 higher to $116.25, while GlobalSantaFe gained $3.86 to $78.60.

The company created by the deal will carry a market value of around $53 billion.

In another deal, United Rentals (NYSE: URI) has agreed to be taken private by affiliates of Cereberus Capital Management in a cash deal worth $4 billion.

Shares in United Rentals were trading $33.08 at mid-session, up 71 cents.

Equities markets in New York saw gains at midday on Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial average had added 1.2 percent to 13,739.47 after having reached a new high at 13,744.92 earlier in the session, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.9 percent to 2,674.8 and the S&P 500 gained 0.9 percent as well, to 1,532.81.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck (NYSE: MRK) added 2.4 percent to $50.09 on a broker upgrade.

On the other hand, biotechnology group Genentech (NYSE: DNA) dropped 1.9 percent to $74.46 even though it said its earnings were up by 41 percent in the second quarter.

The retail sector was mixed ahead of data on June sales, which will be released on Friday, but most were higher at mid-session.

The main exception was Macy’s (NYSE: M), which dropped 3.5 percent to $39 after it said that sales were slower than had been expected and reduced its earnings outlook for the second quarter.

Elsewhere in the sector, Wal-Mart (NSYE: WMT) added 2.1 percent to $48.70 after it said sales were up by 2.4 percent. JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) gained 3.2 percent to $73.46, while Target (NYSE: TGT) was up 3.7 percent to $68.01.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) was 6.2 percent higher to $27.63 on a gain of 5.7 percent in same-store sales in June.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) added 7.5 percent to $74.59.

Alcan (TSX: AL; NYSE: AL) was 10.6 percent higher to $99.05 after miner Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) offered $38.1 billion in cash for the aluminium producer.

Rival Alcoa (NYSE: AA), which had also bid for Alcan but had that offer rejected, was up 7.4 percent to $45.55.

In early afternoon trade on Wall Street on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.18 percent higher to 13,590.44, while the Nasdaq Composite had gained 0.09 percent to 2,659.17 and the S&P 500 was up 0.07 percent to 1,526.53.

The news that Advanced Medical Optics (NYSE: EYE) had bid more than private equity for rival eye-care products group Bausch & Lomb (NYSE: BOL) sent shares in both lower.

Advanced Medical Optics dropped 96 cents to $34.93, while Bausch & Lomb was down 16 cents to $71.84.

The pharmaceuticals sector declined on the session.

Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP) dropped 2 cents to $30.55, while Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) fell 13 cents to $25.77 and Merck was 61 cents lower to $49.21.

Retailers were higher, however.

Discount retailer Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) added 25 cents to $48.34, while home improvement retailer Home Depot (NYSE: HD) gained 50 cents to $40.33. Macy’s (NYSE: M) was $1.75 higher to $41.52 and Target (NYSE: TGT) was up $2.67 to $66.88.

At midday on Wednesday the New York equities markets seemed to have risen above Tuesday’s declines, helped along by comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that Tuesday’s conditions in global equities markets had done nothing to change his assessment that the US economy could look forward to moderate growth this year. By mid-session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 0.3 percent to 12,257.74, while the Nasdaq Composite was 0.2 percent higher to 2,413.64 and the S&P 500 was up 0.3 percent to 1,405.75.

The telecommunications sector was higher after Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) added 2.5 percent to $19.41 on its report that quarterly profits were up and that it expects to gain more subscribers. That news helped Verizon (NYSE: VZ), which gained 1.8 percent to $37.20.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Merck (NYSE: MRK) added 2.1 percent to $44.10 after it improved this years earnings forecast.

Homebuilders were lower after new data that showed new home sales down at its steepest rate in 13 years. The S&P Homebuilders index dropped 1.5 percent, and Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) saw its shares fall 2.4 percent to $29.85. In a related sector, home improvement retailer Home Depot (NYSE: HD) said it would likely see slower sales due to the downturn in the housing market. That statement sent its shares 0.6 percent lower to $39.59.