quarter earnings rose, bolstered by higher sales at its Banana Republic chain. Gap shares rose to $22.29 on Inet from their $21.28 close on the NYSE. Meanwhile, H&R Block Inc., the world's largest tax preparer, surged 6.5 percent to $50.10 on Inet from its close of $47.04 on the NYSE. The company said on Thursday quarterly profit fell, but earnings were ahead of expectations. In economic news, the number of new claims for U.S. jobless benefits climbed more than expected to 312,000 last week, government data showed. In another report, new orders for long-lasting manufactured goods fell 0.9 percent last month as demand for autos and civilian aircraft fell, but businesses boosted orders for capital goods, the government said. --SP 2343 Local Time 2043 GMT
