Solid advance on Wall Street

Wall Street advanced solidly today to finish the week higher as oil prices cooled and investors embraced signs that the economy could move forward despite Hurricane Katrina’s devastation of the Gulf Coast.

Falling energy prices lent to a brighter economic picture in Katrina’s wake, with crude oil sliding despite worries about record-high energy costs this winter and continued refinery shutdowns and gas futures slipping below 2dollars a gallon.