Dow, S&P 500 end two-week slip

NEW YORK – U.S. stocks mostly advanced Friday, with two of the major indexes halting a two-week losing streak, as better-than-expected corporate results overrode global concerns.

“A lot of stock prices are being made in Europe these days, but it is a short-term phenomenon. Even though the economies are weak, they seem to be doing what they should be doing, and that sort of behavior tends to be rewarded,” said John Manley, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advantage Funds.

“The market is coming to grips with what lies before it. On balance, earnings numbers are more positive than negative,” he added.

After rising as much as 118 points, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 65.16 points, or 0.5 percent, to 13,029.26, up 1.4 percent from the week-ago close and its first weekly gain in three.

Microsoft Corp. rose 4.6 percent a day after the software company said net income fell from the year-ago period, but its profit and sales topped Wall Street’s expectations.

Dow component General Electric Co. rose 1.2 percent after the aircraft-engine manufacturer and financial-services provider reported earnings that topped Wall Street’s estimates.

Up 0.6 percent on the week, the S&P 500 index climbed 1.61 points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,378.53, with utilities and consumer staples leading sector gains and technology and financials lagging among its 10 industry groups.

Apple Inc. shares fell 2.5 percent to $572.98, off more than 10 percent from $644, the record intraday high reached April 10. The close under $580 sets the stage “for a fast move down to $525,” said Richard Ross, technical strategist at Auerbach Grayson & Co.

Apple’s fall weighed on the Nasdaq composite index, which turned lower in the final hour of trade, off 7.11 points, or 0.2 percent, at 3,000.45 – a level that has it off 0.4 percent from last Friday’s finish and extending its weekly losing spree to three.