Stock market recap

Stocks ended the day and the week higher Friday as investors looked ahead to a big week of earnings reports.

The Dow industrials finished with a gain of 59 points and were up nearly 52 points on the week.

The Nasdaq composite index advanced more than eleven points, bringing the week's gain to 20 points. And the S-and-P 500 added five points, rising nine points for the week.

Oil prices may ease

An easing of supply jitters by the report of a partial reopening of a key Texas refinery pushed oil futures down slightly yesterday. Light, sweet crude for May delivery fell 22 cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange -- to 63 dollars, 63 cents an ounce. For the week, the front-month contract was down 65 cents.

The week ahead

Retail sales and consumer inflation are the lead items on next week's agenda of economic releases. Reports are also scheduled on housing starts, oil inventories and jobless claims.

The flow of first-quarter earnings reports starts in earnest next week. Companies scheduled to post results include Citigroup, I-B-M, Google, Intel and McDonald's

Taxes

A new AP poll shows most people file their tax returns electronically because it's convenient, despite lingering concerns about security. Half of those surveyed say they use a professional tax preparer to file their returns, a quarter use a software program and 15 percent do the returns the old fashioned way -- with pen and paper.