U.S. Markets

U.S. blue-chip stocks closed out their best month of the year Friday, as first quarter earnings reports sent major indexes to fresh multiyear highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 47.23 points, or 0.4%, to 12810.54, its highest close since May 2008. The blue-chip measure surged 4% during the month and extended its winning streak to five straight months. The Dow is now up almost 11% for the year.

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Powering the move Friday, Caterpillar gained $2.77, or 2.5%, to 115.41, after its earnings and revenue blew past expectations. Merck rose 18 cents, or 0.5%, to 35.95, after the pharmaceutical company's results topped forecasts.

Chevron rose 63 cents, or 0.6%, to 109.44 as the oil company reported a jump in earnings, boosted by higher oil prices and stronger refining margins. Microsoft sank 79 cents, or 3%, to 25.92, after reporting a decline in sales of its Windows computer operating system. The Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 1.01 point to 2873.54, its highest close since December 2000, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index rose 3.13, or 0.2%, to 1363.61.

Encouraging first-quarter earnings and a steady hand from the Federal Reserve pushed other major indexes to fresh highs in April. Both the Russell 2000 index of small-capitalization stocks and the Dow Jones Transportation Average set record closes this week. Investors said the market's monthly rise was sparked by the steady flow of better than expected first-quarter earnings reports, which have largely drowned out lingering concerns about the labor market and rising oil prices.

U.S. economic data were lukewarm Friday, as U.S. personal incomes rose 0.5% in March but consumer spending slowed from a month earlier. When adjusted for inflation, consumer spending rose 0.2% last month. Separately, a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment at the end of April came in a hair below the expected 70 reading and the Chicago Purchasing Managers' index for April came in just beneath forecasts.

European Markets

European stock markets moved higher in thin trading to finish April with solid gains, while London was closed for the royal wedding. The Stoxx Europe 600 index increased 0.3% to 283.78 on the last trading day of the month, leaving it up 2.9% for April. The index has advanced in four of the past five months.

London, which ended the month up 2.7%, will also be closed Monday for a bank holiday. Volvo rose 2.3%. The auto maker posted robust results this past week and lifted its European and North America outlook as demand continues to recover. Daimler fell 1.7% after net income failed to meet expectations for a second consecutive quarter. Volkswagen rose 1.5%. In Frankfurt, the DAX 30 index rose 0.5% to 7514.46, the highest close since January 2008 and marking a 6.7% rise for April. Deutsche Bank rose 0.7% a day after reporting upbeat results.

In Paris, the CAC-40 index was flat at 4106.92 but ended April up 3%, the fourth monthly advance in the past five. Total rose 0.5% after the oil company reported adjusted net income rose 35%, matching forecasts. Several European solar-power companies rose, benefiting from news Thursday that Total would take as much as a 60% stake in U.S. solar-power technology business SunPower. Norway's Renewable Energy surged 7.9%, while SolarWorld jumped 6%, and Q-Cells added 4.6% in Frankfurt.

Asian Markets

Major Asian markets were mostly lower Friday. South Korea's Kospi shed 0.7% to 2192.36, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.4% to 23720.81, Taiwan's Taiex lost 0.4% to 9007.87 and India's Sensex fell 0.8% to 19135.96. China's Shanghai Composite bucked the trend, edging 0.9% higher to finish at 2911.51, ending a five-session skid.

Japanese markets were shut for a public holiday. The broad regional decline came as investors turned jittery heading into the Labor Day weekend, with many regional markets closed Monday. The advance in Shanghai was led by stocks that were beaten down earlier in the week, with Anhui Conch Cement rising 2.1%, Poly Real Estate Group adding 1.8% and Jiangxi Copper climbing 1.6%. Three of the nation's top four lenders reported better than expected first quarter results Thursday, but investors apparently looked to lock in gains ahead of the long weekend; Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the nation's largest lender by assets, fell 0.7% and Bank of China dropped 0.3%; their Hong Kong shares were down 0.2% and 1.2%, respectively. China Construction Bank rose 0.4% in Shanghai but fell 0.3% in Hong Kong.

South Korean stocks were weighed on by investors looking to take profits from record highs earlier in the week. Shares of Samsung Electronics fell 0.8% after the technology heavyweight said its first-quarter net profit was down more than 30% from a year earlier. LG Electronics, which Wednesday reported an unexpected first-quarter loss, dropped 3.7%.

Oil

Crude oil futures prices settled at fresh two and a half year high Friday spurred by surging gasoline prices which rose for a seventh day. The May-delivery gasoline contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange expired at the highest level since mid-July 2008, a level that, if sustained, suggests retail prices are on target to top record highs above $4.11 a gallon.

Nymex light, sweet crude oil for June delivery rose $1.07 a barrel, to $113.93 a barrel. ICE June Brent crude settled up $1.93 a barrel, or 1.5%, at $125.89 a barrel, a three week high. Gold futures topped $1,550 an ounce as investors sought an alternative to the U.S. dollar.

The most actively traded gold contract, for June delivery, rose $25.20, or 1.6%, to settle at a record $1,556.40 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It extended its intraday peak to $1,569.80 in electronic trading after the close. May gold gained $25.20, or 1.6%, to end at a nearby record $1,556.00, posting its biggest monthly dollar and percent gain since November 2009.

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