Despite the lack of direction shown by the broader markets, airline stocks posted some strength. Among the most notable advancers, Mesa Air Group (MESA: chart) rose 1.9%, Continental (CAL: chart) climbed 2.3%, ExpressJet (XJT: chart) jumped 2.7%, Alaska Air (ALK: chart) added 1.4%. Among companies driven by analyst comments, American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. (AHM: chart), mortgage lender, fell 2.7% after Bear Stearns downgraded its rating on the company''s stock. On the other hand, shares of Heelys (HLYS: chart) surged 8.9% after Wachovia upgraded its rating on the footwear maker, expecting the company to exceed the consensus Q1 earnings estimate. In late morning trading, The Dow Jones industrial average fell 6.42, or 0.05%, to 12,523.63. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was up 0.09, or 0.01%, at 1,439.46, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 3.54, or 0.14%, to 2,462.23. Bonds showed little movement, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note unchanged at 4.65% from late Wednesday.


9:45AM U.S. stocks opened mixed ahead of Easter holiday.
Wall Street started trading narrowly mixed on Thursday after a three-day winning streak and ahead Friday''s release of key employment data. There was little reaction to the latest initial jobless claims figures, which rose to their highest weekly level. Investors cautiousness was also attributed to the fact that the stock market is closed on Friday for the Easter holiday. In corporate news, Micron Technology (MU: chart) fell 1.2% due to disappointing quarterly results, followed by a brokerage downgrade. The chipmaker reported $52 million in Q2 and was cut to sell at Goldman Sachs. On the positive side, semiconductor stocks Marvel Technology and National Semiconductor showed some strength, contributing to the modest gain of the tech-heavy Nasdaq. Marvell Technology (MRVL: chart) rose 2.3% and National Semiconductor (NSM: chart) climbed 1.6%.

Tech giant Dell (DELL: chart) was little moved after it said it wouldn''t file its annual report on time because the internal investigation into its past accounting practices hasn''t finished yet. Nokia (NOK: chart) and Qualcomm (QCOM: chart) settled a patent dispute as Nokia agreed to pay Qualcomm $20 million in Q2 for using its UMTS license. Shares of Nokia added 0.6%, while Qualcomm slipped 1.2%. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 20.73, or 0.17%, to 12,509.32. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was down 1.37, or 0.10%, at 1,438.00, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 0.14, or 0.01%, to 2,458.83. Bonds showed little movement, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note unchanged at 4.65% from late Wednesday.


9:30AM The FTSE advanced buoyed by BoE decision not to raise the rates.
The UK market was higher on Thursday. The FTSE 100 was up 10 points to 6,374.7 by mid-afternoon trade.

Economic news

The cost of borrowing stayed at 5.25% on Thursday but a large majority of investors expect the Bank of England to deliver another increase in May, as industrial growth is slowing and the housing market is weakening.

Advancers

Old Mutual led the gainers, up 2.2%, as Citigroup increased their rating on the life assurer from hold to buy.

Takeover talk lifted InterContinental Hotels, up 1.2%, as speculation continued that the Barclays brothers would team up with a private equity group and bid for the company.

Royal Dutch Shell rose 0.5 % and BP gained 0.6% as the oil price rose and ABN Amro talked up the long-term possibility of consolidation.

Decliners

Scottish & Newcastle dipped, losing 0.9% as expectations for a potential bid for the company from European rivals died away.

Vodafone lost 0.5% after the telecommunications group admitted that Indian laws would prevent it from owning all of the 67% shareholding in Hutchison Essar that it said in February it was planning to acquire for 5.6 billion pounds.

Electronic cable firm Volex was down 6.9%, announcing it is pleased with progress since interims last November, although the weak dollar and high copper prices mean full year figures will be slightly below expectations.


9:15AM Asian markets finished mostly lower with Japan leading the region lower.
Asian markets ended lower on Thursday. Japanese Nikkei 225 average closed 0.3% lower at 17,491.42. Oil company Inpex Holdings dipped along with other energy-related shares as crude-oil prices declined below $65 a barrel in the wake of the resolution of the U.K.-Iran crisis. Shares of Inpex shed 2.8% in Tokyo. Among export-related shares, Honda fell 1.4%, while Toyota Motor eased 1.1% in Tokyo.

Hitachi Construction Machinery advanced 1.6% as the company is on track to pay a higher year-end dividend for the business year beginning April 1 than its planned dividend for the just-completed fiscal year.

Chinaese benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.8% to 3,319.14. Singaporean shares hit a second straight record high on buying in select market large-cap on strong earnings expectations. The benchmark Straits Times Index ended up 12.94 points, or 0.4%, at a record 3345.86 points.