U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

The Nasdaq composite added 20.53 to 2,133.41, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 78.49 to 10,527.63, and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 was up 7.35 to 1,219.21.

The 10-year Treasury dropped 12/32, or $3.75 per $1,000 invested, to yield 4.142%. The 30-year bond declined 21/32 to yield 4.383%. Yields move inversely to prices.

The airline sector is advancing in Monday's early trading hours and the sector is currently up 2.2%.

Tech shares also rally, especially semiconductor, disk drive and Internet spaces, which made the biggest gain.

Energy stocks are among the biggest decliners as Hurricane Dennis causes oil prices to vary further. The oil service sector declined about 1.3%.

DreamWorks Animation SKG on Monday announced it received an informal request for information from the SEC, concerning trading in its securities and the disclosure of its financial results on May 10. The SEC has informed DreamWorks Animation that the informal investigation should not be construed as an indication that any violations of law have occurred and the company added it intends to cooperate fully with the inquiry.

Shares of DreamWorks are down 14% to $23.01 after the company abandoned a $500 million secondary offering and warned of disappointing financial results.

Oil company Pogo Producing Co. said it has agreed to acquire Northrock Resources Ltd., a unit of Unocal Corp. in a $1.8 billion cash deal. Pogo's shares lost 1.4% to $54.01, while shares of Unocal edged up 0.3% to $65.93.

Goldman Sachs Group’s private equity division and Germany’s Allianz AG are negotiating over acquiring a stake over $1 billion in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, which is one of the biggest state-run banks. The stake each of the two banks would get in ICBC is not yet clear.

Merck trades up 0.2% as jury selection began in Texas for the first wrongful-death suit filed over the company's discontinued drug Vioxx. Merck withdrew Vioxx from the market last fall after it was suspected of causing cardiovascular problems in some patients.

INTERNATIONAL MARKET NEWS

European markets closed higher benefiting from strong gains in the technology and utility shares and crude-oil prices below $59 a barrel helping airlines and carmakers. Markets were also helped by strong close of U.S. stocks Friday. Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 1.1% after the German opposition party, The Christian Democrats, was reported to reveal election platform. France’s CAC 40 rose 0.6%, and London’s FTSE 100 added 0.2%.

Asian stocks finished mostly higher returning to solid gains in reaction to strong U.S. market close Friday, positive U.S. jobs data and falling crude-oil prices. In early Asian trading crude-oil futures dipped to $58.66 a barrel, 77 cents down, as the expected hurricane Dennis was downgraded to a tropical storm. Japan’s Nikkei gained 1%, Hong Kong’s Heng Sang added 1.4%, and South Korea’s Kospi rose 2%. Through the region only China’s Shanghai Composite and Thailand’s SET ended down. In early trading the greenback quoted near 112.20.

European stocks advanced at mid-day trading following a strong close in U.S. markets Friday, gains in technology shares after the report of LG Philips, and crude-oil prices below $59 a barrel supporting airlines and carmakers. Averages in Germany added 1.1%, in France gained 0.6%, and in the U.K. rose 0.3% as business returned to normal after the attacks last week.

ENERGY, METALS AND CURRENCIES MARKETS

The U.S. dollar was lower against other major currencies in European trading. The euro quoted at $1.2043and the pound traded at $1.7514. The Japanese yen fell against the dollar; it bought 111.86 yen, down from 112.23. In mid-day trading in NY the dollar bought 111.73 yen and the pound was worth $1.7570. Gold futures climbed. In London gold closed at $425.80 bid per ounce, silver finished at $7.07 per ounce.

Oil futures fell more than a dollar after hitting a record high of $62.10 last week as worries about damage to U.S. oil and gas facilities eased following the passage of Hurricane Dennis. August delivery dropped $1.13 to $58.50 a barrel, and London Brent slid $1.19 to $57.01.

Gold futures advanced in morning trading with August delivery up 70 cents to $424.50 per troy ounce. Indexes tracking the metals sector are also up with the Amex Gold Bugs Index 1% higher.

The U.S. dollar fell from last-week 14-month highs against the euro and 19-month highs against the pound as weaker-than expected jobs report hindered the greenback’s rally and investors waited for U.S. trade data later in the week. The euro gained ground after the EU Constitution was approved and the dollar dropped to $1.2010 per euro, down from $1.8666. The dollar was 0.4% down vs. the pound at $1.7453.

EARNINGS AND CORPORATE NEWS

PepsiCo, Apple Computer Inc. and General Electric Co. are due to release earnings this week.