NEW YORK — Wall Street managed to finish an erratic session with a moderate gain yesterday as investors found some comfort in upbeat data on durable goods orders.

Oil prices, however, remain a big focus on Wall Street. Crude's recovery from its lows yesterday ate into some of the stock market's enthusiasm over the Commerce Department's durable goods report; the government said orders for items including aircraft, machinery, cars, refrigerators and computers slipped 0.5 percent last month.

Wall Street expected a steeper decline. Excluding transportation, orders rose 2.5 percent — the sharpest increase in nine months. Orders for electrical equipment jumped 27.8 percent, its largest rise.