国际英语新闻：Wall Street mixed as energy gains offset disappointing earnings

NEW YORK, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street ended mixed Friday, as energy shares climbed on a gain in oil and offset disappointing reports from Microsoft Corp. and Amazon.com Inc..

    Crude oil added 1.3 percent after falling one percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Exxon Mobil and Conocophillips led energy producers higher.

    Moreover, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told the House Financial Services Committee that the Fed's emergency lending programs are diminishing in size. The market read it as a sign that the worst is over, which also boosted the sentiment after the mid-day trading.

    Microsoft shares dropped 8.3 percent Friday, the most since January, after the tech giant said late Thursday that its revenue fell short of analysts' expectations. Amazon.com also reported weaker-than-expected sales, and its shares fell nearly eight percent. Therefore, tech-heavy Nasdaq got hammered Friday and broke its first 12-day rally since 1992.

    On economic data, the Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment decreased to 66 in July from 70.8 in June, in line with forecasts.

    The Dow Jones rose 23.95, or 0.26 percent, to 9,093.24. Broader indexes capped mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 2.97, or 0.30 percent, to 979.26; and the Nasdaq lost 7.64, or 0.39 percent, to 1,965.96.