WASHINGTON — The beleaguered housing industry is sending mixed signals, with sales of new homes surging in April by the biggest amount in 14 years while prices endured a record plunge.

Analysts said the price drop could provide evidence of builders' desperation. They are looking to reduce a glut of unsold homes in the face of the worst slump in sales in more than a decade.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that sales of new single-family homes jumped by 16.2 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 981,000 units.

That was the biggest one-month sales gain since a 16.4 percent surge in April 1993. Even with the increase, however, sales are 10.6 percent below the level of a year ago.

The median price of a new home — the midway point between the costliest and cheapest — fell to $229,100, a record 11.1 percent below the March level.

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STOCKS END DOWN AS ECONOMIC DATA AWAITED

NEW YORK — Wall Street retreated Thursday after housing data showed sales surged in April by the largest amount in 14 years, damping hopes that an interest rate cut would be needed to stimulate the economy.

Investors were originally enthusiastic after the Commerce Department reported sales of single-family homes rose 16.2 percent last month after falling slightly in March. Even though the report indicated that the economy continues to expand, investors became unnerved by a record drop in home prices.

With first-quarter corporate earnings reports mostly in, Wall Street is again placing increased significance on economic data. Reports Thursday suggested the Federal Reserve might be successfully steering the economy toward a soft landing and that a rate cut might not be needed.

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DELL PLANS TO SELL COMPUTERS AT WAL-MART

NEW YORK — In a departure from the direct-to-consumer business model it was founded on, Dell Inc. plans to sell computers at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer.

A Dell spokesman said Thursday the computer maker will begin selling two models from its Dimension desktop computer line in about 3,000 Wal-Marts beginning June 10.

Dell spokesman Dwayne Cox said the Wal-Mart deal "represents our first step" into global retail.

Cox said Dell will announce additional moves into retail in the coming quarters, but he declined to give specifics.

The two Dimension E521 models will be sold at Wal-Marts in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Dell said it could not reveal specific prices yet. On its Web site, the cheapest Dimension E521 costs $359.

Since its founding in the 1980s, Dell has relied on selling PCs and other products directly to consumers and business customers over the phone and Internet. It viewed direct sales as an important cost advantage over competitors who sold computers through retailers.

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CONNECTICUT FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST BEST BUY

HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut's attorney general announced a lawsuit Thursday against Best Buy Co. Inc., accusing the nation's largest consumer electronics retailer of deceiving customers with in-store computer kiosks and overcharging them.

The lawsuit accuses Best Buy of denying deals found at the company's Web site, www.BestBuy.com. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said store employees charged customers higher prices found on a lookalike internal Web site.

Calls seeking comment were placed to the company.

The complaint was dated May 18 to be served on the company, which must return a response by June 13. The lawsuit, which seeks refunds for consumers, civil penalties, court costs, a ban on the practice and other remedies, would then be filed in Hartford Superior Court.

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FRAUD CONVICTION UPHELD FOR ADELPHIA FOUNDER

NEW YORK — A federal appeals court Thursday upheld the fraud conviction of Adelphia Communications Corp. founder John Rigas, a one-time movie theater projectionist who built one of the nation's largest cable television companies and then looted it.

The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the conviction of the 82-year-old Rigas and his son, Timothy J. Rigas, on charges of securities fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud. The court did reverse their conviction on one lesser count.

Lawyers for the men had argued that fraud charges should be thrown out because accounting terms were not explained to the jury.

"Defendants are wrong," the Manhattan appeals court wrote bluntly. It added that the government was not required to present expert testimony about accounting requirements because the requirements are not essential to the securities fraud.

The prosecutor had no comment on the decision; lawyers for the Rigases did not immediately return calls.

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TOLL BROTHERS SAW PLUNGE IN PROFITS

PHILADELPHIA — Government data showing an unexpected surge in new home sales weren't much comfort to luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc., which reported a 79 percent drop in second-quarter profits Thursday.

The Commerce Department reported that sales of new single-family homes jumped 16.2 percent in April — a 14-year high — to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 981,000 units. Economists were expecting just a 0.2 percent gain. However, the median price of a new home dropped by the largest amount on record.

Economists were pleasantly surprised by the showing in April, the start of the home-buying season, but remain cautiously optimistic because the surge in demand seems to have been driven by price cuts instead of more sustainable factors like consumer confidence.

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CHINA UNDER PRESSURE TO STRENGTHEN CURRENCY

WASHINGTON — President Bush told a senior Chinese economic minister Thursday that the United States is "watching very carefully" whether Beijing will strengthen the value of its currency.

After a meeting with Vice Premier Wu Yi, the leader of the largest high-level Chinese delegation ever to visit the United States, Bush told reporters the U.S. is "making it clear to China that we value our relationship, but the $233 billion trade deficit must be addressed." Strengthening China's currency, he said, is one way to deal with the deficit.

A day after high-level economic talks with senior Bush administration officials, Wu planned meetings Thursday with frustrated congressional leaders. Discussions Wednesday failed to reach a breakthrough in the countries' biggest dispute: China's undervalued currency.

Many lawmakers are considering legislation that would punish Beijing for trade practices that they say have driven U.S. trade deficits to record levels and cost thousands of manufacturing jobs.

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BARNES & NOBLES SEES LOSS IN FIRST QUARTER

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble Inc., the largest U.S. bookseller, said Thursday it lost money in its first quarter, hurt by increased discounts for its members. But strong sales of new releases pushed revenue upward.

The loss for the quarter ended May 5 totaled $1.6 million, or 3 cents per share, versus a profit of $10 million, or 14 cents per share, a year ago.

Excluding a 6-cent per share charge related to closing an Internet distribution center and 7 cents per share in expenses associated with a review of its stock-option practices, income was 10 cents per share.

Revenue rose 3 percent to $1.15 billion from $1.11 billion last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected earnings of a penny per share on revenue of $1.14 billion.

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GAS PRICES CONTINUE CLIMB UPWARD

NEW YORK — Gasoline prices climbed Thursday after another round of outages at U.S. refineries stoked supply concerns ahead of Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start of the summer driving season.

Crude oil prices dropped, however, as traders figured that U.S. crude inventories, already abundant, are likely to swell even more if refineries keep paring back operations for maintenance.

Despite a ramp-up in gasoline production last week, the nation's gasoline inventories remain 6.9 percent below where they were last year, the Energy Department said Wednesday. Additional shutdowns are likely to boost roadside fuel prices further into record territory, analysts said.