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.

Wall Street was down on Monday as crude oil prices were once again on the rise as worries grew once again over Iran’s insistence on continuing its nuclear development program. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session 0.3 percent lower to 11,345.05, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.8 percent to 2,147.75 and the S&P 500 declined by 0.4 percent to 1,297.52.

Nearly the only sector that the higher oil prices helped was the oil sector itself. ExxonMobil was 1.1 percent higher to $69.83, while Marathon Oil added 3.1 percent to $89.94.

Also higher on the day, as investors sought a safe place to put their money, was the gold segment of the mining sector. Newmont Mining was up 3.6 percent to $52.55. Barrick Gold added 4.2 percent to $33.00. Copper miners also saw gains as a South American strike continued with not immediate hope of a solution. Freeport McMoran advanced by 4.7 percent to $57.15 and Coeur d’Alene was 4.9 percent higher to $5.37.

Home improvement retailers were lower. Lowe’s dropped 4 percent to $28.35 on a disappointing second-quarter report, and has lost 15 percent since January. Home Depot followed Lowe’s lower, falling 1.4 percent to $34.30. Elsewhere in the retail sector, Dollar General was down 9.6 percent to $12.74.

Transport was hit by higher oil prices, with Burlington Northern Santa Fe dropping 3.5 percent to $66.07 and Norfolk Southern declining by 4.1 percent to $42.46.

Internet stocks were lower as well, as Google fell 1.6 percent to $377.30, Yahoo was 3 percent lower to $28.90, and Amazon declined 3.4 percent to $28.13.

There was little movement in New York equities markets by midday on Wednesday on continuing concerns that interest rates will continue to rise. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1 percent higher to 11,156.78, while the Nasdaq Composite was slightly lower at 2,295.83 and the S&P 500 had dropped 0.1 percent to 1,296.31.

Banks were struggling as quarterly reports continued to come in or be due soon. Lehman Brothers said their first quarter earnings were up 24 percent but still lost 0.7 percent early and struggled to stay even by midday at $145.28. Bear Stearns, due to report Thursday, was down 0.5 percent to $133.88 and Goldman Sachs dropped 1.1 percent to $147.71 on profit-taking.

Sears Holdings, which owns not only Sears but K-Mart, gained 10.1 percent to $130.04 on its earnings reports, which came in much higher than had been expected. Elsewhere in the retail sector, drugstore chain CVS dropped 2.7 percent to $29.74 on the report that the Securities and Exchange Commission has begun an informal inquiry into the company’s accounting practices.

An investigation into alleged wrongdoing also hurt tax preparer H&R Block, which lost 4.3 percent to $21.05. New York State Attorney Eliot Spitzer announced that his office is looking into charges that the company has urged clients to invest their tax refunds in retirement accounts that do not generate enough interest to cover account fees.

Railroads did well on the day after increased price estimates from Merrill Lynch when Union Pacific upped its estimate of first-quarter profits by 20 percent. Union Pacific was up 5.3 percent to $89.76. Among other railroads, Burlington Northern Santa Fe advanced 4.9 percent to $80.24 and Norfolk Southern gained 3.3 percent to $53.21.