MORNING BUSINESS MINUTE, FRI. APR. 21, 2006

Earnings from GM and Merck pumped the Dow to a six-year high point -- but the NASDAQ suffered after disappointing earnings from E-Bay. The price of oil backed off record high levels, down -0.22 cents a barrel for a final fix of $71.95 on Nymex. The Dow added +64.12 (+0.57%) to close at 11,342.89 -- a six year high. The NASDAQ lost -8.33 (-0.35%) to close at 2,362.55 and the S&P 500 added +1.53 (+0.12%) to close at 1,311.46. Local stocks posted mostly negative results. Wal-Mart (WMT) lost -0.15% to close at $46.40. AllTel (AT) lost -0.49% to close at $64.63. Tyson Foods (TSN) lost -2.64% to close at $12.92. JB Hunt (JBHT) added +3.54% to close at $23.71. Acxiom (ACXM) lost -0.08% to close at $26.44. Today, we see no economic figures, but earnings season continues. We`ll have quarterly figures from 3M, Ford Motor Company and from Halliburton. Overseas last night in Asia, the Nikkei rose +84.02 (+0.5%) to reach 17,401.55 at the mid-day break in Tokyo -- the broader Topix added +8.9 (+0.5%) to reach 1,756.76. Back in the U.S., in extended hours trading, the NASDAQ 100 Afterhours Indicator rose +6.68 (+0.39%) to close the night at 1,735.58.