Significant strength was visible in the semiconductor, airline, and brokerage sectors. The semiconductor sector was boosted by National Semiconductor (NSM: chart) which surged 14% after delivering stronger-than-expected Q4 earnings.

In late morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 16.34, or 0.12%, to 13,283.07. The blue-chip average was led higher by General Motors (GM: chart), up 2.1% and Alcoa (AA: chart) shares, rising 1.1%. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index rose 2.30, or 0.15%, to 1,493.02, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 10.24, or 0.40%, to 2,551.62.


[R]9:45AM U.S. stocks opened higher on bargain hunting.[/R]

U.S. stock markets posted modest gains at opening on Friday on bargain hunting after three days of heavy losses. However, concerns about rising bond yields continued to take their toll. Following an improvement in the April trade deficit, the yield of the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond retreated from an overnight high of 5.25%. Utility stocks recovered slightly as the yield on the 10-year Treasury retreated to 5.1%. Constellation Energy Group (CEG: chart) fell 1.3%, while Entergy Corp. (ETR: chart) rose 2.3%.

The Dow was led higher by McDonald''s (MCD: chart) which rose 2.35% after saying global same-restaurant sales rose 8.7% in May. Tech stocks were sent higher by strength in the chip sector. National Semiconductor (NSM: chart) surged 10% after posting better-than-expected drop in profit. The company also said it was buying back $2 billion worth of shares. Further boost to the Nasdaq was given by chip maker Texas Instruments (TXN: chart) which added 2.2% and analog chip maker Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM: chart) which advanced 1.4%.

Crude oil futures declined, sending oil shares down. Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM: chart) lost 0.8% and Chevron Corp. (CVX: chart) stock lost 1.2%. In early trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.38, or 0.01%, to 13,268.11. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index fell 3.22, or 0.22%, to 1,487.50, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 6.41, or 0.25%, to 2,534.97.


[R]9:15AM U.S. stock futures traded in a lackluster fashion.[/R]

U.S. stock futures turned in a lackluster fashion on Friday, slightly recovering from steep losses recently. Rising bond yields and positive results from National Semiconductor were the pre-market highlights. The dollar rose sharply against the euro and the yen. Crude oil and gold futures declined.

Shares of National Semiconductor (NSM: chart) climbed 9% in electronic trading after reporting a smaller-than-forecast 24% profit drop. The company also said it was buying back $2 billion worth of shares. UBS upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. Rival companies Texas Instruments (TXN: chart) advanced 1.8% and chipmaker Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM: chart) rose 2.7%.

Again in the sector, Qualcomm (QCOM: chart) appealed a regulatory ruling that is preventing the import of mobile devices containing chips made by the company. In other corporate news, McDonald''s Corp. (MCD: chart) rose 0.8% in pre-open trade, following news that its global same-restaurant sales surged 8.7% in May.

On the economic news front, the Commerce Department said that U.S. trade deficit narrowed by 6.2% in April to $58.5 billion, coming in below the consensus forecast of $63.5 billion. S&P 500 futures eased 0.5 of a point at 1,503.20 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 2.75 points at 1,910.00. Dow industrial futures rose 10 points.


[R]9:00AM London is lower Friday on miners, Vodafone.[/R]

The benchmark FTSE 100 Index in London declined 44.90, or 0.7%, to 6,460.2 at mid-day in London.

Advancers

Aukett Fitzroy Robinson Group advanced 7.1%. The architectural and engineering company announced first-half profit soared after demand in the U.K. rose.

Fuller Smith & Turner jumped 0.9%. The owner of pubs reported first-half net income of 29.1 million pounds, up from 10.4 million pounds, and added it will continue to grow its business organically.

Oil large-caps Shell and BP were better on higher crude prices. Shell advanced 0.9%, while BP gained 1.3%.

Decliners

Vodafone declined 0.5%. The shares advanced 2.1% yesterday after a shareholder group stated Vodafone should return as much as 38 billion pounds to investors by spinning off its Verizon Wireless stake and issuing bonds. Vodafone rejected the proposals.