US STOCKS-Tech titans Apple and Microsoft push Wall St higher

(For a live blog on the U.S. stock market, click LIVE/ or type
LIVE/ in a news window.)
* Rare session of subdued trading on Wall Street
* U.S. core capital goods March orders show surprise rise
* AmEx builds up reserves to cover potential loan defaults
* Indexes: Dow +0.55%, S&P 500 +0.84%, Nasdaq +1.05%

(Updates to afternoon)
By Noel Randewich
April 24 (Reuters) - Wall Street rose on Friday, led higher
by Apple and Microsoft as investors finished a turbulent week of
trading and some states prepared to relax coronavirus-related
lockdowns.
Apple AAPL.O and Microsoft MSFT.O each climbed more than
1%, lifting the S&P 500 more than any other companies. The two
tech titans are on tap to report their March-quarter results
next week, giving investors a glimpse at how the pandemic has
affected their global businesses.
Boeing Co BA.N tumbled 5.6% after a report the planemaker
was planning to cut 787 Dreamliner output by about half.
All of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes moved up, with
information technology .SPLRCT jumping 1.3% and consumer
discretionary .SPLRCD rallying 1.2%.
Even with Friday's gains, the S&P 500 was on course to end
the week lower, with investors fearful of a deep economic slump
following a near-crash in April business activity and weekly
jobless claims topping 26 million in five weeks.
The index has recovered more than 25% from its March low and
expectations are growing that more businesses will be allowed to
reopen as coronavirus infections showed signs of peaking.
Georgia became the first state to push ahead with its plan
to allow an array of small businesses to reopen on Friday
despite disapproval from President Donald Trump and health
experts. Investors may be overestimating how quickly U.S. businesses
can go back to normal, and the S&P 500 could fall 5% or more as
it becomes evident that resuming normal economic activity may
not happen for months, warned Eric Freedman, chief investment
officer at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in North Carolina.
"We think this is likely to be a little bit of a sideways
market, and we won't be surprised to see a bit of downside
before we see more upside," Freedman said.
Overall, analysts still expect a 15% decline in S&P 500
first-quarter earnings, with profits for the energy sector
estimated to slump more than 60%, raising fears of debt
defaults, layoffs and possible bankruptcies. New orders for key U.S.-made capital goods unexpectedly rose
in March, but the gains are not likely to be sustainable amid
the pandemic, which has abruptly shut down the economy and
contributed to a collapse in crude oil prices. The CBOE volatility index .VIX , known as Wall Street's
fear gauge, was down for the third straight session.
At 2:28 pm ET (1828 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average
.DJI was up 0.55% at 23,643.48 points, while the S&P 500
.SPX gained 0.84% to 2,821.41.
The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 1.05% to 8,583.87.
Verizon Communications Inc VZ.N declined 0.4% after it
lost 68,000 phone subscribers who pay a monthly bill in the
first quarter. American Express Co AXP.N dipped 0.9% after posting a 76%
drop in first-quarter profit as the credit card issuer braced
for potential losses stemming from the coronavirus outbreak.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
1.28-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.44-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted one new 52-week high and one new low; the
Nasdaq Composite recorded 29 new highs and 11 new lows.