Stocks Finish Strong Week On Mixed Note

New York, NY (AHN) - After posting solid gains for the week, markets traded sideways Friday as neither buyers nor sellers showed any real conviction.

The Dow Jones Industrial average was able to rise 49.9 points or 0.44 percent helped by shares of Citigroup, which added 7.6 percent on the session. The bank reported second quarter earnings that showed a smaller than expected loss, sparking a rise in share price.

The S&P 500 finished Friday relatively flat, gaining less than 1 point.

Technology was somewhat weak with the Nasdaq Composite shedding 29.5 points or 1.28 percent on Friday. The tech sector was weighed on by Google, down nearly 10 percent after the company's second quarter earnings come up short of analyst expectations.

Microsoft also weighed on tech as shares sold off 6 percent after the software giant posted fourth quarter earnings a penny shy of expectations. The company also offered a tepid outlook for the coming year.

The financial sector added 1.1 percent higher as Fannie and Freddie both added more than 10 percent, sparked by comments that Freddie is committed to raise $5 billion in capital as requested by regulators.

For the week, the Dow Jones Industrials gained 3.5 percent, the S&P 500 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.95 percent. Financials were strongest, up 11.4 percent on the week. Lehman and Bank of America lead the way, both gaining more than 25 percent on the week.

Crude oil fell for the third straight day, settling at $128.88 a barrel, down 41 cents. The commodity shed 11.2 percent on the week representing its biggest weekly decrease in more than three years.

Next week will see even more earnings reports with the likes of Wachovia, Washington Mutual, Apple, and United Parcel Service providing quarterly results.