MORNING BUSINESS MINUTE, FRI. FEB. 17, 2008

We saw strong earnings from Hewlett Packard -- a jump in home construction and some positive sounds from the Fed. The results? The Dow hit a near four-and-a-half year high -- adding +61.71 (+0.56%) to close at 11,120.68. The NASDAQ added +18.20 (+0.80%) to finish at 2,294.63. The S&P 500 added +9.38 (+0.73%) to reach 1,289.38. Local stocks posted mostly negative numbers. Tyson Foods (TSN) lost -0.34% to close at $14.66. JB Hunt (JBHT) lost -3.19% to close at $24.92. Acxiom (ACXM) added +0.32% to finish at $25.00 and Wal-Mart (WMT) lost -0.55% to finish at $46.63. We`ve got economic numbers to look at today -- we`ll see the Producer Price Index for January and also get a preliminary look at the February University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment numbers. We`ve got earnings -- but we`re not following any major numbers. Overseas in Asia last night the Nikkei lost -2% to reach 15,729.88 at the mid-day break in Tokyo, and the broader Topix lost -1.6%. Back in the U.S., in extended hours trading, the NASDAQ 100 Afterhours Indicator rose +0.81 (+0.05%) to close at 1,689.42.