Wall Street lifted as US trade gap narrows US equities started the last day of the week on a positive note, bolstered by data showing the trade deficit narrowed. Economists saw the unexpected narrowing of the US trade gap to $38.5bn in December, from $48.6bn the month before, as a guarantee that the dip in fourth-quarter GDP would be revised to a small gain in the second estimate. US markets were set to record their sixth consecutive weekly gain. The benchmark S&P 500 gained 0.5 per cent to 1,517.24 in early morning trade and was set to record a slight gain over the week. Except for the utilities stocks, all major sectors were trading in positive territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5 per cent to 14,009.13 but was flat on the week. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8 per cent to 3,190.73, driven by gains in Apple, which added 1 per cent to $473.15, continuing its rally from the previous session, after the iPhone maker announced it would distribute more cash to its shareholders. Aol Inc shares soared after the web publisher, which owns Huffington Post, reported its first quarterly rise in sales since its split from Time Warner in 2009. The results surprised investors as analysts were expecting a decline in sales. Shares jumped 10.7 per cent to $34.76 and have gained more than 90 per cent in the past 12 months. Moody's dropped sharply, even after the owner of the second-largest rating agency by number of bonds rated reported a surge in fourth-quarter profits. Corporations took advantage of lower borrowing costs as well as record demand for bonds to issue record volumes of debt last year, driving a 66 per cent rise in the company's net profits. However, the rating agency is mired in legal controversy as the US Department of Justice said it had not ruled out the possibility of suing Moody's for alleged fraud in its ratings of mortgage-related securities before the crisis. The shares fell 4.6 per cent to $44.73, having dropped sharply earlier in the week after the DoJ sued its larger rival Standard & Poor's for alleged fraud. Biogen, a pharmaceuticals company, announced it agreed to buy a stake in the multiple sclerosis medicine Tysabri in a $3.25bn cash and future royalties deal. Its shares rose 3.2 per cent to $165.44. The stock was also upgraded by analysts at Citi Research.