Stocks edge higher; Dow average near 14,000

NEW YORK (AP) ? Stocks are edging higher on Wall Street after a report showed that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed sharply in December.

The market is also getting a boost from strong earnings reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 47 points to 13,991 shortly before noon Friday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up six points at 1,516 and the Nasdaq composite rose 29 points to 3,192.

The trade deficit fell nearly 21 percent in December from November to $38.6 billion, the smallest in nearly three years. Exports rose while oil imports plummeted.

The smaller gap means the economy likely performed better in the final three months of last year than first estimated last week.

LinkedIn and Microchip Technology, a semiconductor maker, rose after reporting strong earnings.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stocks-edge-higher-dow-average-near-14-000-165457967--finance.html

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