The Commerce Dept. added that shipments of durable goods fell 1.3 percent in January following a 4.1 percent increase in December, while inventories of durable goods rose 0.3 percent in January, marking the fifth consecutive month of growth.

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 finished higher Friday, supported by upbeat financial news from WPP, Lloyds TSB and Sanofi-Aventis. The German DAX 30 gained 0.2%, the French CAC 40 climbed 0.7%, while London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.4%.

OIL, METALS, CURRENCIES

Crude oil prices jumped to $63 on supply concerns triggered by news of a suicide bomb attack in a huge oil refinery in Saudi Arabia. Light sweet crude April delivery climbed $2.46 to $63 a barrel. London Brent for April delivery rose $2.04 to $62.58 a barrel.

European gold advanced on accelerating inflation concerns caused by rising crude oil. In London gold traded advanced to $557.80 bid per troy ounce, up from $553.40. In Zurich the precious metal traded at $557, up from $552.90. In Hong Kong gold fell 20 cents to $551.80. Silver closed at $9.57, down from $9.58.

The U.S. dollar traded mixed against other major currencies. The euro traded at $1.1875, down from $1.1917. The dollar bought 116.79, down from 117.12. The British pound stood at $1.7457, down from $1.7506.

EARNINGS NEWS

Gap Inc., (GPS: chart), 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: chart), 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: chart), 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: chart), 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: chart), 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.

Huntsman Corp., (HUN: chart), chemical manufacturer, reported a Q4 net loss of 27 cents a share, down from a loss of 10 cents a share in the year-earlier quarter. Adjusted income from continuing operations dropped to 14 cents a share, from 43 cents a share despite revenue growth to $3.15 billion from $3.12 billion. The company missed analysts’ expectations for earnings of 28 cents a share.

Citizens Communications Co., (SZN: chart), wireline communications services provider, reported that Q4 net income soared to 23 cents a share, from 5 cents a share in the year-ago quarter on 3% sales growth, topping analyst views of 14 cents a share. The company added 21,200 high-speed internet customers during the quarter.

American Retirement Corp, (ACR: chart), retirement communities operator in 19 states, reported that Q4 net income surged 88.5% to 12 cents a share on 11.4% higher revenue and stronger sales and reduced leverage had boosted figures.The company added that there were a few negatives, including expenses following Hurricane Wilma, start-up costs related to its new pharmacy operations and higher utility costs, which each cost around 1 cent a share.