11:30AM U.S. stocks traded lower on worries about the subprime mortgage business.
U.S. market ailed to extend the strong rally of the previous session, as lingering worries about the subprime mortgage market and rising oil prices weighed. Concerns about the subprime lending market and how it might affect the broader housing market were being addressed Thursday at a Senate committee hearing. The Dow Jones Industrial Average which rallied 159 points on Wednesday was dragged down by notable losses for Home Depot (HD: chart), down 1.1% and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT: chart), down 1.1%. Financial stocks American Express (AXP: chart), Citigroup (C: chart), and J.P.Morgan Chase (JPM: chart) also contributed to the downside.

Among companies in focus, Orient-Express Hotels (OEH: chart) climbed 5.5%, hitting a new 52-week high after a news report that the operator of hotels, restaurants, tourist trains may be bought in a deal worth more than $3 billion. Investors were also digesting earnings reports and profit outlooks. On the earnings news front, KB Home (KBH: chart) lost 1% after the homebuilder said its Q1 profit fell 84% but came in above analyst expectations.

The tech sector came under pressure after warning by Motorola (MOT: chart) that the cell phone maker will swing to a Q1 loss due to declining sales. Shares of the company slipped 5.6%. Further on the earnings news front, Barnes & Noble (BKS: chart) fell 3% after it reported higher Q4 results, but but missed expectations. Borders Group (BGP: chart) reported it swung to a Q4 loss and announced plans to close nearly half its Waldenbooks stores. Company''s shares dropped 2.1%.

In brokerage raing news, Nookia (NOK: chart), Motorola''s main rival, rose 1% after Credit Suisse raised its rating on the stock. Procter & Gamble (PG: chart) rose 1.3% after Bear Stearns upgraded the stock to outperform, citing valuation. On the side of the losers, RF Micro Devices (RFMD: chart), a supplier to Motorola, was downgraded by CIBC World Markets, sending its stock down 4.6%. In late morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 25.15, or 0.20%, at 12,422.37. The Nasdaq composite index declined 10.62, or 0.43%, to 2,445.30. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index lost 3.91, or 0.27%, to 1,431.13.


Leading indicators index fell 0.5%.
The Conference Board released its report on leading economic indicators in the month of February on Thursday, showing that its leading indicators index fell more than economists had been expecting. The report showed that the leading indicators index fell 0.5 percent in February following a revised 0.3 percent decrease in January. Economists had expected the index to fall 0.3 percent compared to the 0.1 percent increase that was originally reported for the previous month. The decrease by the index was partly due to large negative contributions from initial claims for unemployment insurance, consumer expectations, and vendor performance. Positive contributions from manufacturers'' new orders, stock prices, and real money supply helped to offset the decline. The Conference Board also said that the coincident index increased 0.3 percent in February following a 0.1 percent decrease in January. The increase reflected a large positive contribution from industrial production. Additionally, the lagging index increased 0.2 percent in February after coming in unchanged in the previous month. Positive contributions from commercial and industrial loans outstanding and change in CPI for services contributed to the increase.


10:30AM London equities were higher on Thursday on a rally in Next.
The U.K. market was higher on Thursday. The FTSE 100 was up 85 points in early trading, and was trading 40.5 points higher at 6,297.3 at mid-day.

Advancers

Next was the standout,gaining 4.4%, as its full-year figures were lifted by a strong performance from its directories catalogue business. Profits rose 7% to 478 million pounds, despite a decline in same-store sales

Hammerson also advanced 2% as takeover talk refused to die away. The property group has been linked with a bid from Unibail of France. Fellow bid target Whitbread advanced 1.4%

Standard Life added 0.7% as the life assurer posted better-than-expected annual results and announced it would cut down its headcount by a further 1,000 job. Media group Reuters was 1.8% higher as Morgan Stanley lifted its price target from and reiterated its overweight rating.

Decliners

Premier Oil in the mid-caps slipped 2.6% as investors took profits on the exploration group following a 75% rise in annual profit after tax. Premier shares had increased strongly in the run up to the figures, helped by renewed takeover talk. Rank Group continued to slide, a day after the gaming group announced new tax measures in the Budget would cut casino profits by 8 million. Rank fell 6%.

10:00 AM Asia surges with Japan leading the advance in a broad rally.
Asian markets advanced on Thursday. The Nikkei 225 average in Tokyo ended 1.5% higher, rising 256 points to 17,419.20. Export-related stocks gained. Sony rose 1.5% and Canon was up 1.7%. Mitsui Fudosan Co led the property shares in a broad-based advance before the release later in the day of government land-price data. Shares of Mitsui Fudosan advanced 1.2%.

Hong Kong Hang Seng Index finished 0.9% higher, adding 175.69 points to 19,690.25. China Mobile declined 1.8% after the company reported 2006 net income advanced 23%, boosted by rapid subscriber growth and higher revenue from value-added services. The Shanghai Composite Index in China ended at a record for the second straight day, adding 0.5% to 3,071.23.

Elsewhere in the region, Australian S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.6% while Singapore Straits Times Index was up 2%. South Korean Kospi Index gained 0.4% and Taiwan Weighted Price Index rose 0.9%. In Malaysia, the KLSE Composite edged 1% higher. New Zealand NZX-50 index also ended 0.6% higher.


9:45AM U.S. stocks opened lower.
Wall Street moved to the downside on Thursday, giving up some of the previous sessions''s buying interest. Investors awaited more economic data to see if market rally could extend or profit-taking will be the course of action. The Conference Board said that the index of leading economic indicators fell 0.5% in February, close to the 0.4% drop expected by economists, with four of the 10 indicators increasing.

A notable increase by the price of oil helped inspire traders to cash in on the recent gains. Crude, oil May delivery climbed $1.86 to $61.47 a barrel. The higher price led to significant weakness in the oil-sensitive airline sector, while energy stocks pushed notably higher, helping to limit the downside trend for the broader markets. Oil service stocks posted particularly strong gains.