Nasdaq Closes Higher, but Dow Loses a Point in Light Trading

(Updated from 3:38 p.m. EDT)

Tech stocks remained higher in the last hour of trading, and the blue-chips were hovering around the flatline, but volume was light on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.17 points, or 0.01%, to 10,415.08. The Nasdaq added 25.31 points, or 1.29%, to 1981.78, and the S&P 500 was up 1.05 points, or 0.09%, to 1191.21.

Goldman Sachs raised its rating on several companies in the semiconductor sector, saying that fundamentals will be stronger in the fourth quarter. The firm added a number of stocks to its recommended list, including Intel(INTC Quote), Broadcom(BRCM Quote), Conexant(CNXT Quote) and MicroTune(TUNE Quote).

Shares of Intel traded up 61 cents, or 2.04%, to $30.56, and Broadcom gained $2.82, or 6.63%, to $45.37.

General Electric(GE Quote) was the most active stock on the New York Stock Exchange, where it traded down 34 cents, or 0.80%, to $42.23.

Ford(F Quote) was also on the move, trading down $1.03, or 4.16%, to $23.74. UBS Warburg downgraded the automaker to reduce from hold and trimmed its price target to $20 from $22.

Biotech stocks had a strong session, while chips and internet stocks saw modest gains.

In overseas activity, European stocks traded higher. London's FTSE 100 was up 4 points, or 0.07%, to 5431. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 lost 258 points, or 2.19%, to 11,478. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng fell 72 points, or 0.61%, to 11,694.