U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

U.S. stock futures fell after a report of an explosion and shooting at a Saudi Arabian oil facility sent oil futures sharply higher. U.S. crude climbed $1.70 to $62.24 a barrel.

In early morning futures predicted a higher market start amid takeover speculations in the utility sector and before key speeches by Federal Reserve officials.

In merger-and-acquisition news, British power company National Grid Plc announced it was in talks with KeySpan Corp. Negotiations are likely to lead to a $7 billion takeover of the U.S. natural gas distributor.

Boeing Co. is in talks with individual Chinese airlines to deliver 80 jets and hopes to settle a $4.6 billion deal in April.

The Commerce Department reported that new orders for durable goods fell 10.2% in January, from a revised 2.5% gain in December. Analysts expected a 1% decline.

S&P 500 futures were down 0.8 point, below fair value. Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 26 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.50 point.

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS NEWS

Asian-Pacific benchmarks finished Friday session mixed, reflecting strong currencies and weakness on the side of major tech stocks, following a strong performance in Japan during the week. The Nikkei was slightly down at 0.04% on weak exporter issues, hurt by falling dollar against the yen. Among other regional markets, Taiwan’s Weighted index climbed 1%, Shanghai Composite gained 0.6%, while India’s Bombay Sensitive index slipped 0.3%.

European stocks traded in the positive at mid-day supported by upbeat news from WPP, Lloyds TSB and Sanofi-Aventis which offset the lower U.S. markets close. The German DAX 30 gained 0.13%, the French CAC 40 added 0.14%, while London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.3%.

OIL, METALS, CURRENCIES

Crude oil prices advanced as continuing concerns over Nigerian supply disruptions and Iran’s nuclear program counteracted a report showing an increased domestic fuel supplies. Light sweet crude April delivery climbed $1.01 to $61.55 a barrel. Gasoline rose 2 cents to $1.5330, while heating oil was up 2 cents at $1.6860. Natural gas traded down 11 cents at $7.343 per 1,000 cubic feet. London Brent for April delivery rose 87 cents to $61.41 a barrel.

European gold advanced on accelerating inflation concerns caused by rising crude oil. In London gold traded advanced $4.01 to trade at $552.85 bid per troy ounce. Silver rose 4 cents to $9.57.

The U.S. dollar traded mixed against other major currencies. The euro traded at $1.1916, down from $1.1917. The dollar bought 116.58, down from 117.12. The British pound stood at $1.7518, up from $1.7506.

EARNINGS NEWS

Gap Inc., (GPS), apparel retailer reported Q4 earnings fell 11% to 39 cents per share, from 40 cents per share in the year-ago period on lower sales. For fiscal year 2005, the company earned $1.24 a share, up from $1.21 a share a year ago. Results were in line with the analysts’ forecast.

MGM Mirage Inc., (MGN), casino company, posted a 31 % increase in Q4 earnings to 33 cents per share, in comparison with the same period the previous year weathering the closure of its hurricane-battered resort in Mississippi. If not for non-operating and one-time items, MGM said it earned 35 cents per share, beating analysts’ expectations of 33 cents per share. Revenue per available hotel room advanced 8 % to $152 in Q4, even as the company added 11 %, or 160,000 more room nights, on the Strip.

Wynn Resorts Ltd., (WYNN), gambling company, announced a loss of $11.4 million in Q4 because of one-time charges it took in building a casino in Macau. The result is much narrower than the year-ago loss of $127.7 million. If not for $16.5 million in charges, the company earned 5 cents a share, down from 15 cents a share the previous year. Revenue for Q4, came in at $269.4 million, lifted by $131.9 million in net gambling revenue from the company''s Wynn Las Vegas casino and $177.2 million in non-gambling sales. The company missed analysts'' expectations of adjusted earnings of 8 cents per share.

Kaydon Corp., (KDN), maker of industrial equipment and materials, reported Q4 net income of 46 cents a share, up 44% from 31 cents a share in the year-earlier period, beating analyst estimate of 40 cents a share. Sales increased to $89.7 million from $72.2 million.

OGE Energy Corp, (OGE), gas and electricity utility, reported that its Q4 net income soared to $56.1 million, or 61 cents a share, from $9.7 million in the year-ago period on 18.3% revenue growth and mainly due to substantially higher expenses in the year-ago quarter, which stemmed from system reliability improvements.