US STOCKS-Wall St edges up, slack volume points to top

                                

                                
 * Chinese trade data lifts basic materials shares
                                
 * Trading volume lowest so far this year
                                
 * Green Mountain jumps on report of Starbucks partnership
                                
 * Dow flat, S&P 500 up 0.24 pct, Nasdaq up 0.28 pct
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
  (Updates to close)
                                
 By Rodrigo Campos
                                
 NEW YORK, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Energy and commodity shares
lifted Wall Street to modest gains on Monday, but the lowest
volume so far this year indicated the equity rally may be near
a top.
                                
 The S&P 500 edged up, trading near its highest since June
2008, nominally a good sign, but the index was stuck in the
1,325-1,333 area without enough buyers to get through this
technical hurdle.
                                
 A mere 6.6 billion shares traded on the New York Stock
Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, the lowest
volume so far this year and far below the 8 billion daily
average for 2011.
                                
 Shawn Hackett, president at Hackett Advisors in Boynton
Beach, Florida, said rising index levels on falling volume sets
the stage for a pullback.
                                
 "Everything I see suggests the driver now is a last bit of
greed and momentum before the market runs out of buyers," he
said.
                                
 Three-month copper <CMCU3> hit a record high after Chinese
import figures suggested strong demand for basic materials.
Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold <FCX.N> jumped 4.9 percent to
$56.14 and the PHLX Gold/Silver index <.XAU> rose 2.2 percent.
                                
 The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dipped 5.07 points,
or 0.04 percent, to 12,268.19. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index
<.SPX> rose 3.17 points, or 0.24 percent, to 1,332.32. The
Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 7.74 points, or 0.28
percent, to 2,817.18.
                                
 Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N> was one of the worst performers
on the Dow after JPMorgan downgraded the stock. Shares fell 1.6
percent to $54.80. [ID:nL3E7DE16Z].
                                
 The S&P 500 has gained nearly 27 percent since the start of
September. It now stands near the 50 percent extension of last
year's slide from April to July and also near 100 percent
advance from the low hit in March 2009.
                                
 The coincidence of the levels makes the technical
resistance stronger.
                                
 Still, some traders see residual strength in the market and
are willing to buy on any declines in prices.
                                
 "We wouldn't be surprised to see a pullback, but longer
term we think the market has room to grow," said Mitch Rubin,
chief investment officer at RiverPark Advisors in New York.
                                
 Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by
a ratio of about 5 to 4, while on the Nasdaq, about seven
stocks rose for every six that fell.
                                
 U.S. President Barack Obama proposed a federal budget that
he said would cut the U.S. deficit by $1.1 trillion over the
next 10 years. Congress must approve the plan, and Republicans,
who are in the majority in the House, said it did not curb
spending enough. For details, see [ID:nN14301981].
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 Obama's budget would provide $8 billion for investment in
clean energy, but big drugmakers might take a hit from generic
competition under two proposals in the plan.
                                
 Among alternative energy companies, Trina Solar <TSL.N>
gained 5.2 percent to $28.79 while GT Solar International
<SOLR.O> climbed 2.7 percent to $11.50. Drugmaker Merck & Co
<MRK.N>, a Dow component, slid 0.8 percent to $32.82.
                                
 Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc <GMCR.O> shares jumped
6.7 percent to $46.35 after Reuters reported the company has
been in partnership negotiations with Starbucks Corp <SBUX.O>.
[ID:nN14103750].
                                
 Recent merger and acquisition activity continued.
                                
 EchoStar Corp <SATS.O> agreed to buy Hughes Communications
Inc <HUGH.O> for about $1.33 billion. Private equity firm
Clayton, Dubilier & Rice agreed to take Emergency Medical
Services Corp <EMS.N> private for about $3 billion.
[ID:nL3E7DE0TR] [ID:nN14278970].
                                
 Shares of Hughes fell 3.7 percent to $59.47 while EchoStar
rose 3.2 percent to $30.84. Emergency Medical fell almost 11
percent to $62.92.
 (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos, additional reporting by Ryan
Vlastelica; Editing by Kenneth Barry)