Wall Street continues to see a mixed performance after an hour of trading on Friday. Some positive economic data have helped push the blue chips higher, but some traders are looking to book profits after the recent run up in the market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is climbing 32.70, or 0.3 percent to 12,796.01. The S&P 500 is holding a gain of less than a point, sitting at 1,360.70. The Nasdaq is down 6.35, or 0.2 percent, to 2,866.22.
The U.S. Commerce Department revealed that personal income increased 0.5 percent in March. This followed an upwardly revised 0.4 percent increase in February. Economists had been looking for a rise of around 0.3 percent.
Personal spending also rose during the month. The figure climbed by a 0.6 percent increase, also beating expectations.
Counteracting this positive report about the consumer was a disappointing reading for Midwest manufacturing. The ISM - Chicago said Friday its business barometer fell to 67.6 in April from 70.6 in March. Economists had been expecting the index to show a more modest decrease to a reading of 68.5.
The verdict on the latest batch of earnings is mixed. Caterpillar, a key bellwether for the economy, is seeing a strong response to its quarterly results. Meanwhile, some disappointments in the tech space are sparking declines.
Construction equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) reported a surge in its first-quarter profit. On the results, shares of the company are up $2.36 to $115.
First-quarter earnings at oil giant Chevron Corp. (CVX) climbed to $6.2 billion, or $3.09 per share, beating analysts' expectation of $3.04 per share. The stock saw some early losses, but shares have bounced back and are now up 34 cents to $109.15.
Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM, RIM.TO), maker of the popular Blackberry mobile device, lowered its earnings forecast for the first quarter. The stock is down sharply in early trading, falling $7.88 to $48.72.
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) said Thursday after the markets closed that its third-quarter profit rose 31% from last year, driven by strong sales of Office 2010, Xbox and Kinect. However, revenue for the company's windows and windows live division fell for the second straight quarter, reflecting weak PC trend. Shares of the software maker are down 96 cents to $25.75.
European stocks are generally showing gains. The German market is higher as optimism about economic recovery prevailed with investors shrugging off weak cues from Asia and disappointing domestic economic data. The French market saw some early weakness, but has scrambled back to the flat line. The UK markets are closed for the royal wedding.
Germany's DAX index is up 31.56 points, or 0.4 percent. France's CAC 40 is down less than a point.
Asian stocks ended mostly lower Friday amid concerns that China may further tighten its monetary policy to control its swelling inflation. There were also concerns about disappointing economic data from the U.S. and high crude oil prices. The Japanese market remained closed for a holiday.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com