Wall Street was on the rebound at midday on Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.52 percent to 13,743.45, while the Nasdaq Composite was 1.29 percent higher to 2,786.34 and the S&P 500 added 0.78 percent to 1,526.26.

The Nasdaq was helped by Microsoft’s (NAS: MSFT) quarterly report, which was released late Thursday.

Microsoft added 9.2 percent to $34.93 after it reported that profits were up 23 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter.

Sales were up 27 percent over the same period last year on success with Windows, Office, and its new “Halo 3” computer game.

The oil sector saw gains as crude oil prices continued in record territory.

Oilfield services group Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) added 1.7 percent to $99.77, while Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) was up 2.9 percent to $71.05.

In the financial services sector, Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) added 17.1 percent to $15.29 even though it had losses of over $1 billion in the third quarter as it said it would cut jobs and return to profit in the fourth quarter.

Elsewhere in the financial sector, Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675) gained 4.5 percent to $63.65 on reports that it’s chief executive might soon be replaced.

There are rumors that CEO Stan O’Neal was in talks about a merger with Wachovia (NYSE: WB) that he did not reveal to the board of directors.

The New York equities markets were up at midday on Monday, but investors were cautious a day ahead of the next meeting of the US Federal Reserve, which will decide whether or not to raise interest rates again after holding off on a hike last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2 percent higher to 11,579.18, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.5 percent to 2,245.93 and the S&P 500 was up 0.3 percent to 1,324.03.

Homebuilders were up, with Toll Brothers gaining 1.6 percent to $28.53 and Pulte up 1.7 percent to $32.50. The gains did not extend to home improvement retailer Home Depot, however, which dropped 1.5 percent to $36.68 on a downgrade from “outperform” to “neutral” from Credit Suisse.

The semiconductors sector was also higher. Nvidia was 2.9 percent higher to $30.41 and Advanced Micro Devices advanced by 3.3 percent to $27.40. Freescale Semiconductor added 5.7 percent to $39.29 after it was announced that it would be acquired by a private equity consortium. Meanwhile, chip making equipment manufacturer Applied Materials gained 3.4 percent to $17.78 on the announcement of another share buyback.

The possibility of cuts in production from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and a statement from Iran that claimed that its offer to halt its enrichment of uranium was misunderstood in the West sent shares in oil companies higher. ExxonMobil was 2 percent higher to $65.94, while Schlumberger added 2.8 percent to $57.84.

Ford Motor was down again, falling 2.2 percent to $7.84, as investors continued to react to an announcement Friday that among its cost-cutting measures would be the elimination of a third of its payroll.

Rising oil prices and worries about increasing tensions in the Middle East sent the New York equities markets lower Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had declined by 1 percent by midday to 10,742.96, bringing its fall for the week to 3.1 percent. The Nasdaq Composite was 0.9 percent lower at mid-session to 2,035.11, a 4.5 percent decline for the day. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 had fallen 0.8 percent by midday to 1,232.14, a 2.6 percent fall on the week.

The computer sector was down during the week after Microsoft was fined $280 million in Europe after a court determined that they had not complied with an earlier anti-trust ruling. Microsoft dropped 3.6 percent to $22.46. Hewlett Packard declined even more, by 5.4 percent to $31.07.

The rise in crude oil prices sent oil stocks higher. ExxonMobil added 2.4 percent to $45.29, while Schlumberger gained 4.7 percent to $65.72, helped by an increased target share price from Morgan Stanley.

Homebuilders saw declines after DR Horton reported that sales were down in the third quarter, making it necessary for it to cut its guidance for full-year earnings. Horton lost 13.1 percent to $20.77. Elsewhere in the sector, Pulte declined by 7.6 percent to $26.78 and KB Home fell 12.7 percent to $39.97.

Worries about consumer spending hit the retail sector. Wal-Mart declined by 5.9 percent during the week to $43.29 on a downgrade from “buy” to “neutral” from Merrill Lynch. Meanwhile, consumer electronics retailer Best Buy fell 13.9 percent to $45.02.

The New York equities markets were lower at mid-session on Friday, reflecting what looked to end up a losing week for everyone but the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Dow was lower by 0.1 percent at the mid-point in the day, to 11,009.19, but was on course to finish 1.1 percent higher on the week. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.6 percent on the day so far and down 0.2 percent on the week to 2,130.38. The S&P 500 was 0.5 percent lower on the day to 1,250.24, also 0.1 percent lower over the week.

Oil services companies were off for the week, as Schlumberger was down 2.3 percent to $57.88 and BJ Services also lost 2.3 percent, to $35.24.

Banks were down, as well, though not by as much as they could have been. Lehman Brothers, down by 11 percent at one point in the week, was down 4 percent to $62.97 by mid-session on Friday, and Goldman Sachs was off 4 percent to $143.94 where it had been down by as much as 8.7 percent earlier in the week. Bear Stearns was 3.1 percent lower to $132.18.

Stock exchange operators also ended the week in negative territory. Intercontinental Exchange was down 2.7 percent to $49.45, while Nasdaq lost 3.2 percent to $25.52 and NYSE Group declined by 6.4 percent to $53.50.

Ethanol producer Verasun Energy began trade on Wednesday, gaining 30 percent on its first day of availability. While it lost value on Thursday, mid-day Friday found it still 8.7 percent ahead for the week at $25.00.

Wall Street staged a slight recovery on Wednesday morning as investors paid less attention to concerns about inflation. By the middle of the session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 0.6 percent to 10,764.73, while the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.5 percent to 2,082.01 and the S&P 500 gained 0.2 percent to 1,225.67.

With metals prices higher, miners took back some of their recent losses. Freeport McMoran and Newmont Mining each added 4 percent, to $45.50 and $49.58 respectively. Still in commodities related stocks, oil and related companies saw gains on the day. Halliburton was up 2.7 percent to $70.12, while Schlumberger gained 2.9 percent to $56.16 and Noble Corporation advanced by 3.8 percent to $65.16.

In semiconductors, upgrades from Goldman Sachs helped out both Intel and Advanced Micro Devices. AMD was up 3.2 percent to $25.18, while Intel gained 4 percent to $17.80 as it was advanced to “outperform”, from “inline”.

Also receiving an upgrade from Goldman Sachs, from “underperform” to “inline” was airplane manufacturer Boeing, which gained 5 percent to $80.74 after Airbus said it would have to delay delivery of its new A380 superjumbo jet.

Among stock exchange operators, NYSE Group was up 1.5 percent to $50.74, while Nasdaq added 4.9 percent to $25.48.

Falling crude oil prices and gains in the retail and homebuilding sectors helped the New York equities markets to gains by the middle of the day on Wednesday after two days of losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had climbed 0.6 percent to 11,065.27, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.9 percent to 2,181.50 and the S&P 500 was up 0.6 percent to 1,271.15.

The pharmaceuticals sector was up after GlaxoSmithKline said it was considering purchasing Pfizer’s consumer unit if the right price could be reached. This sent shares in Pfizer up 1.1 percent to $24.11. In addition, Abbott Labs gained 1.9 percent to $43.05.

Retailers were up, led by a 3.6 percent gain to $49.31 for Target. In supermarkets, Kroger added 1.9 percent to $20.13, while Supervalu gained 2 percent to $29.39.

After a dismal day on Tuesday, homebuilders were up on the day. DR Horton gained 1.5 percent to $23.75. Pulte, meanwhile, was up 1.9 percent to $28.65.

The chemicals sector was not so fortunate after Deutsche Bank issued downgrades to Dupont and Dow Chemical. Dow was down 0.5 percent to $39.37 and Dupont lost 1.3 percent to $41.64.

While the drop in crude oil prices helped investor sentiment, it did not help the energy sector. Schlumberger and Occidental Petroleum each had lost 1.8 percent by mid-session, to $62.79 and $96.03 respectively.

In much the same way, falling commodities prices sent shares in companies dealing in metals downward. Alcoa was down 2.4 percent to $29.97, while Freeport McMoran dropped 3 percent to $51.22.

After gains early in the day, the New York equities markets retreated on Tuesday after the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates once again, by 25 basis points to 4.75 percent. The statement that came along with the announcement of the hike, while hinting that the series of rate hikes might come to an end at some point in the foreseeable future, still led some analysts to believe that there are more hikes to come before that time comes.

At mid-afternoon, the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 were both flat on the day, at 2,316.01 and 1,301.67 respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average had dropped by 0.2 percent to 11,226.26.

The pharmaceuticals sector was mixed. Eli Lilly dropped 3.9 percent to $56.36 on a pair of downgrades. Friedman Billings Ramsey cut the drugmaker from “market perform” to “underperform”, while Merrill Lynch reduced its rating from “buy” to “neutral”. Both cited the lack of market share of Lilly’s antidepressent Cymbalta as one reason for the ratings reductions.

Elsewhere in the sector, Immunicon added 9.1 percent to $3.94 after it said it was extending a research and development agreement with Pfizer. Pfizer, meanwhile, was down 1 percent to $25.56 after it was revealed that the company is being sued for fraud over the marketing of its drug Lipitor.

The oil sector saw advances in both companies that produce oil and in those that provide oilfield services. ConocoPhillips gained 2.9 percent to $64.93, while ExxonMobil added 0.7 percent to $61.69. These advances took the Amex oil index up 1.2 percent on the day. Meanwhile, oil service company Halliburton advanced by 3.1 percent to $73.81 and Schlumberger rose 1.8 percent to $125.18.

In midday trade in New York on Thursday, the equities markets were lower as retailers were mixed and banks were down.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average had dropped 0.4 percent to 11,013.50 by mid-session, and the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 had lost 0.3 percent each, to 2,307.93 and 1,287.43 respectively.

Higher bond yields and continuing worries over interest rates sent the banking sector lower. Citigroup and Bank of America each lost 0.9 percent, with Citigroup trading at $46.12 and Bank of America at $45.12. Wells Fargo dropped 1.4 percent to $63.80.

In the retail sector, clothing retailers were generally lower, while department stores and discounters had a better day. On a report of same-store growth, Costco Wholesale was up 0.8 percent to $52.60, while Kohl’s gained 1.1 percent to $49.30 after reporting a rise of 3.4 percent in sales. But the Gap dropped 2.7 percent to $18.15 after it revealed that sales were down 11 percent in February. Meanwhile, Abercrombie & Fitch was down 10.3 percent to $60.35 on a report that same-store sales were up by only 5 percent on February, much less than the 14 percent that had been forecast.

The energy sector was up on higher crude oil prices, with energy providers in the lead. Halliburton added 3.5 percent to $71.81, while Schlumberger gained 2.2 percent to $120.70.