Dec. 17, 2010 (WALLSTmoney) --
In New York, stocks were little changed Friday, pulling back from two-year highs reached in the previous session, as investors mulled over the tax-cut deal that passed the House late Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrials retreated 26.72 points to greet noon at 11,472.50
The S&P 500 moved lower 0.27 points to 1,242.60. The Nasdaq Composite Index progressed 7.44 points to 2,644.75.
Late Thursday, the House of Representatives put a final stamp of approval on the $858-billion U.S. tax deal hammered out between President Obama and Republicans. The Senate passed the proposal on Wednesday, and the bill is now awaiting President Obama's signature.
S&P 500 has gained nearly 6% since Obama agreed to compromise with Republicans on the tax plan
Regional banks -- which have been especially hard hit during the recession -- rallied. Regions Financial Zions Bancorp and KeyCorp were all higher in mid-day trade.
After the bell on Thursday, Oracle and Research in Motion announced their past-quarter financial results -- both beat Wall Street analysts' estimates for earnings and revenue. Shares of Oracle rose 6%, and shares of Research in Motion ticked up 3%.
Economically speaking, the index on leading economic indicators (LEI) data for November was released after the opening bell. LEI jumped 1.1%, after edging up 0.4% in the prior month. Economists had been expecting a 1.2% increase.
Meanwhile, a government report on regional and state unemployment showed that more states suffered rising jobless rates in November than in the previous month. A total of 21 states and the District of Columbia reported higher unemployment rates, compared with 14 states in the previous month.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury moved up again, lowering the yield to 3.38% from Thursday's 3.48%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil squirted higher 41 cents a barrel to $88.11 U.S.
Gold futures for February delivery added 60 cents to $1,371.60 U.S. an ounce.