The S&P and Nasdaq gained in the final minutes of trading on Thursday as the Egyptian President, Mr Hosni Mubarak, said he would delegate powers to the vice-president.

Weakness in Cisco Systems Inc brought the Dow’s eight-day rally to an end after the network equipment maker gave a weak outlook.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 10.6 points or 0.09 per cent to 12,229.29. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 0.99 points or 0.07 per cent at 1,321.87. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 1.38 points or 0.05 percent, at 2,790.45.

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