Slight gains for stocks in quiet post-holiday trading

U.S. stocks posted modest gains Friday in quiet, post-holiday trading.<br /> <br /> The Dow Jones industrial average rose 23 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 18,053.<br /> <br /> The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose six points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,088. The Nasdaq composite rose 33 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,806.<br /> <br /> Biotechnology stocks had some of the biggest gains. Celgene rose 3.4 percent, the most in the S&P 500 index.<br /> <br /> Falling oil and natural gas prices helped bolster expectations for stronger consumer spending heading into next year.<br /> <br /> Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell $1.11 to close at $54.73 a barrel in New York. Oil is down by nearly half since June.<br /> <br /> Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.25 percent.