U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

U.S. socks advanced at opening but easily lost steam, finding it difficult to build on momentum and stayed at intraday highs. The initial rise of averages reflected positive economic data including higher personal income for November and a drop in unemployment claims and came despite mixed earnings in the technology sector and insignificant growth in consumer spending.

Micron Technology Inc. released disappointing earnings, threatening to pressure technology stocks.

In economic news, the U.S. Commerce Department reported that personal income in November rose at a seasonally-adjusted rate of 0.3%, down from October''s revised growth rate of 0.5%. Personal spending also climbed 0.3%, following a 0.2% increase in the previous month. The Commerce Department also stated that the price index for personal consumption expenditures, excluding food and energy, ticked up by 0.1% in November.

In a separate report, the U.S. Labor Department revealed that initial jobless claims came declined by 13,000 to 318,000 for the week ended December 17 versus expectations of a more modest dip to 325,000.
The gold sector extended gains to rise nearly 3%. The HMO group advanced 1.3%, challenging its multi-year high.

The airline sector rebounded from early morning losses to rise by nearly 1% as natural gas inventory data dragged down oil prices, sparking interest in fuel-sensitive airline stocks.

Red Hat (RHAT: chart) set a new 52-week high on strong third-quarter results. AMD (AMD: chart) expanded recent gains to set a fresh peak. Humana (HUM: chart) rose by more than 10% on its Medicare enrollment projection and set a fresh high.

General Motors (GM: chart) extended its losing streak for sixth straight day, being the most the most conspicuous decliner and setting a new 52-week low. Tuesday Morning (TUES: chart) broke to a fresh low due to a lowered earnings guidance for the fourth quarter.

In late morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 21.30, or 0.2%. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index added 1.76, or 0.14%, and the Nasdaq composite index gained 3.48, or 0.16%.

Bonds moved higher after two previous down sessions, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.44% from 4.49%.

General Electric Co.''s real estate division announcing the purchase of Arden Realty Inc. for about $3.2 billion in cash, or $45.25 per share. Arden shares slid $1.81, or 3.8 percent, to $45.18, while GE added 20 cents to $35.27.

ECONOMIC NEWS

The Department of Labor released its report on initial jobless claims in the week ended December 17 on Thursday, showing a bigger than expected decline.

The report showed that jobless claims fell to 318,000 from the previous week''s revised figure of 331,000. Economists had been expecting jobless claims to fall to 325,000 from the 329,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The Labor Dept. also said that the less volatile 4-week moving average fell to 324,500 from the previous week''s revised average of 329,250.

Additionally, the report showed that continuing claims rose to 2.638 million in the week ended December 10 from the preceding week''s revised level of 2.597 million.

Thursday morning, the Department of Commerce released its report on personal income and spending in the month of November, showing that income rose in line with expectations while spending growth came in slightly below estimates.

The report showed that personal income increased by 0.3 in November after rising 0.5 percent in October. The increase in personal income came in line with economist estimates.

The Commerce Dept. said that personal spending also rose 0.3 percent in November following a 0.2 percent increase in October. The growth came in slightly below economist estimates of an increase of 0.4 percent.

The report also showed that the price index for personal consumption expenditures fell 0.4 percent in November following an increase of 0.1 percent increase in October. Excluding food and energy prices, the index rose 0.1 percent for the second straight month.