5:00PM NY; 11:00PM Frankfurt; 3:30AM Mumbai - GLOBAL MARKETS
Weak housing, tech and banking stocks contributed to declining averages in New York trading. Lower stock price of HSBC Group contributed to weakness in indexes across the region.

Yield on 10-year bond closed at 4.730% and the 30-year bond closed at 4.839%.

Gold gained $7.400 to close at $664.70 a troy ounce, silver advanced 10.5 cents to end at $13.815 a troy ounce and copper declined $43.500 to close at $5402.00 per metric ton.

Oil gained $1.87 to close at $59.580 a barrel and heating oil increased 5.57 cents to finish at 172.180 cents a gallon. Natural gas advanced 11.6 cents to close at $7.825 per MMBtu. Gasoline went up 5.110 cents to end at 159.260 cents a gallon.

Asian markets closed flat to lower, with Japan''s Nikkei 225 index ending unchanged as profit-taking in domestic-related issues offset gains in technology and exporters. The decliners were Philippines with a decline of 1.12%, Indonesia with a decrease of 0.77% and Singapore with a loss of 0.58%. The advancers were led by Thailand with a gain of 2.36%, Hong Kong with an increase of 0.27% and India with an advance of 0.06%. Australia ended flat at 0.03% as BHP Billiton and Woodside Petroleum led the resources sector lower after crude oil and other industrial commodities fell in New York.

European markets closed lower as investors weighed a deluge of earnings news from some of Europe''s biggest companies and a warning on U.S. provisioning from banking giant HSBC Group. The decliners were led by Italy with a decrease of 0.89%, Belgium with a decline of 0.86% and Netherlands with a loss of 0.84%. There were no advancers.

Latin America markets ended higher led by Brazil with an increase of 0.59%, Mexico with a gain of 0.54% and Argentina with an advance of 0.28%. There were no decliners. Canada ended slightly higher by 0.28%, pressured by losses in the energy and materials sectors but continued tech gains offered support.

2:30PM NY, U.S. Market Movers

Alcon Inc. (ACL: chart) shares climbed 7.6% after Swiss health care products maker fourth-quarter profit surged from the year-earlier period which included hefty charges, while sales rose 16%. The company reported earnings of $354.7 million, or $1.16 per share, compared $60.7 million, or 19 cents per share, during the same period a year prior. Sales rose to $1.22 billion from $1.05 billion a year ago.

Alkermes Inc. (ALKS: chart), biotechnology company, said that its third-quarter net income increased to $2.9 million, or 3 cents per share, from $1.4 million, or 1 cent per share, for the same quarter last year. Revenue rose 50% to $62.4 million from $41.4 million a year ago. Shares jumped 12.1%.

BorgWarner (BWA: chart), auto parts maker, reported fourth-quarter profit fell from the year-ago period as the company restructures its business to counter weakness in the North American market. Profit fell to $40.9 million, or 70 cents per share, from $64.6 million, or $1.12 per share, a year earlier. The latest quarter included restructuring charges, a tax benefit and other items that reduced earnings by a net 38 cents per share. Sales rose to $1.2 billion from $1.05 billion in the year-ago period. Shares advanced 6.7%.

Citi Trends Inc. (CTRN: chart) shares gained 15.2% when store sales for the five weeks increased 3.2%. The apparel retailer said total January sales increased to $36.2 million from $20.9 million during the same period in the prior year.

General Cable Corp. (BGC: chart), maker of wire and cable products, said it swung to a fourth-quarter profit after preferred dividends, aided by stronger demand from electric utilities. The company reported quarterly earnings after preferred dividends of $35.3 million, or 67 cents per share, compared with a prior-year loss of $3.3 million after preferred dividends, or 8 cents per share. Revenue rose to $925.3 million from $617.5 million a year ago. Shares climbed 11.1%.

Luminex Corp. (LMNX: chart), developer of biological testing services, reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $599,000, or 2 cents per share. In the same quarter last year, the company posted a net loss of $1.35 million, or 4 cents per share. Revenue jumped to $14.2 million versus $11.6 million in the same period a year earlier. Shares rose 29.3%.

NxStage Medical (NXTM: chart) shares were up 43.9% after the company struck a multiyear collaboration deal with DaVita, a dialysis-services company. Under this agreement, DaVita said it purchased $20 million worth of NxStage shares at $10 a share, giving it a 7% stake.

TeleTech Holdings Inc. (TTEC: chart), provider of call center and customer management services, said that its fourth-quarter net earnings increased to $21.4 million, or 30 cents per share, compared with $10.09 million, or 14 cents per share, last year. Revenue climbed to $336.7 million versus $304.2 million a year ago. Shares rose 25.5%.

Isilon Systems Inc. (ISLN: chart), develops storage systems for digital content, reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $10.4 million, or 72 cents per share, versus a net loss of $4.08 million, or 78 cents per share, last year. There were 14.55 million shares outstanding compared with 5.25 million a year ago Excluding items, the company posted a loss of $3.3 million, or 6 cents per share, compared with a loss of $4.1 million, or 9 cents per share, last year. Revenue climbed to $20.7 million versus $8.7 million in the same period a year earlier. Shares fell 17.2%.

Syntax-Brillian Corp. (BRLC: chart), high-definition TV maker, reported fiscal second-quarter net earnings of $14.8 million, or 25 cents per share versus a net loss of $1.23 million, or 4 cents per share in the same quarter last year. Revenue climbed to $242.5 million compared with $60.2 million a year ago. Shares fell 13.4%.

1:00PM European markets closed lower, pressured by bank stocks.
European stocks closed in the negative on Thursday, with investors digesting earnings news from some of Europe''s biggest companies and a warning on U.S. provisioning from banking giant HSBC Group. On the economic news front, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank held the interest rates unchanged. Shares of HSBC Holdings slipped 1.5% after the banking giant said loan-loss provisions would be 20% above analyst estimates. The bank said that slowing house-price growth is being reflected in accelerated delinquency trends across the U.S. sub-prime mortgage market. Among other bank stocks, BNP Paribas shares slipped 0.8%. In the telecoms sector, BT Group moved higher after it posted a Q3 profit increase and issued a strong outlook. Shares in U.K. medical devices group Smith & Nephew rose 6.1% amid robust Q4 figures. On the downside, shares in Anglo-Dutch consumer products group Unilever dropped 2.4%, despite surging profit. The German DAX 30 lost 0.6% at 6,876.73, the French CAC-40 declined 0.7% at 5,665.10, and the U.K.''s FTSE 100 fell 0.4% at 6,346.40.

Crude oil prices declined on Thursday. Light, sweet crude March delivery fell 6 cents to $57.65 a barrel. London Brent lost 23 cents to $57. The U.S. dollar traded mixed against its major currency rivals. The euro was quoted at $1.3034, up from $1.3006. The dollar bought 121.15 yen, up from 120.66. The British pound was quoted at $1.9571, down from $1.9692. European gold prices advanced. In London, gold traded at $655.30 per troy ounce, up from $654.90. In Zurich, the precious metal traded at $653.80 per ounce, up from $653.70. Silver closed at $13.69, down from $13.72.