U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

Oil prices on the rise and disappointing outlook from computer maker Dell sent stocks in the negative territory. Economic reports which revealed a larger-than-anticipated rise in wholesale prices and weakening consumer confidence also weighed on sentiment as rising prices trigger concerns that the Fed Reserve will keep raising interest rates to tame inflation.

Dell reported 52% profit jump in Q4 on 13% revenue growth, beating expectations. However, the company also forecast Q1 results below analysts' expectations which added to the market's worries about shrinking profits in 2006.

In economic news, investors were disappointed with a 0.3% rise in January's PPI, which grew faster than economists' prediction for a 0.2% increase. The Labor Department also said that Core PPI, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, rose 0.4%-twice market expectations.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (RRGB: chart) jumped 10% to be one of the morning''s best performers on better-than-expected earnings and guidance.

PXRE Group (PXT: chart) was one of the most conspicuous losers in the early going. The company''s shares dropped 65% after it raised its estimate of the impact of the hurricanes that occurred in late 2005. The company said it predicts a negative impact on its credit rating.

In midday trading, the Dow fell 10.80, or 0.1%, to 11,109.88, after losing as much as 42 points earlier. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 1.35, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite index slid 6.16, or 0.27%.

Bonds rose, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.54% from 4.59% late Thursday.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc (RRGB: chart), restaurant chain, reported Q4 net income declined 2.9% to $5.5 million, or 33 cents a share from $5.7 million, or 34 cents, in the year-earlier period. Revenue rose 19% to $116.5 million. Same-restaurant sales rose 2.7%. The stock jumped 10%.

PXRE Croup (PXT: chart) ,reinsurer, lost almost two-thirds of their value Friday morning after the company reported huge costs related to recent hurricanes and its credit rating was cut. The company estimated net income of $758 million to $788 million before taxes in 2005, up from a previous estimate of between $462 million and $477 million.

Silicon Image (SIMG: chart) swung to profit in Q4, reporting net income of $12.6 million, or 15 cents a share, compared with a loss of $80,000, or break-even per share a year ago. Adjusted net was 16 cents exceeding estimates of 15 cents. Revenue advanced to $61.4 million, compared with $46.1 million, above expectations of $60 million. The stock dropped 15.7%.

Guess (GES: chart) shares fell 7.2% after analysts voiced concern about the company''s forecast for fiscal 2006. Brean Murray lowered its rating on the stock to accumulate from strong buy.

ECONOMIC NEWS

The Department of Labor released its report on producer prices in the month of January on Friday, showing that prices rose in line with economist estimates. At the same time, the report showed a bigger than expected increase in core prices.

The Labor Dept. said that its producer price index rose 0.3 percent in January following a 0.6 percent increase in December. Economists had been expecting the index to increase by about 0.3 percent.

The relatively modest increase in prices came as energy prices were unchanged in January after surging up by 2.0 percent in December. Food prices edged up by 0.2 percent in January following a 0.8 percent increase in the previous month.

The report also showed that core prices, which exclude food and energy prices, rose 0.4 percent in January after edging up by 0.1 percent in each of the two previous months. The increase marked the biggest rise in core prices in a year and exceeded economist estimates of 0.2 percent growth.

The bigger than expected increase in core prices may raise some concerns about inflation and the possibility of further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Subsequently, traders are likely to keep a close eye on next week''s report on January consumer prices.

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS NEWS

Asian-Pacific benchmarks ended Friday session mixed. The Nikkei sharply dropped 330 points, or 2.06%, despite higher-than-expected GDP growth. Across the region South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.4%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.2%, while the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive index suffered a steep decline of 1.13%.