Dow is positive by a pinch

The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average inched forward Thursday, gaining 0.09 percent to avoid a two-day losing streak. The index representing a cross-section of the most powerful companies in the country split close to even with 17 companies advancing and 13 declining. Winners were paced by Chevron Corp., whose shares rose 1.1 percent. Losers were paced by Microsoft Corp., which dropped 1.78 percent The Nasdaq index was given a boost by Facebook, which rose a blistering 29.61 percent after advertising revenue for mobile devices was reported up 76 percent, climbing to $656 million. The Nasdaq index added 25.59 points or 0.71 percent to 3,605.19. The Standard & Poor's 500 gained 4.31 points or 0.26 percent to 1,690.25. On the New York Stock Exchange, 1,751 issues advanced, while 1,319 declined on volume of 3.3 billion shares. The 10-year treasury note rose 3/32 to yield 2.578 percent. Japan's Nikkei index shed 1.14 percent or 168.35 points to 14,562.63. In Britain, the FTSE 100 index dropped 0.49 percent or 32.48 points to 6,587.95. In after-hours trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude oil was up 22 cents or 0.21 percent to $105.61 a barrel. Gold added $14 or 1.06 percent to close at $1,334.10 per troy ounce on the NYMEX Comex division while silver gained 18.5 cents to close at $20.205. On currency markets, the euro was lower at $1.3278. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 99.33 yen. On the Chicago Board of Trade, December corn was off 2 to $4.78 1/4, November soybeans were off 32 3/4 to settle at $12.24 and September wheat was off 4 3/4 to $6.48 1/2.