TECH STOCKS: Amazon Rallies; Microsoft, IBM Slip

By Benjamin Pimentel, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Amazon.com rallied Friday as the company's latest initiatives in cloud computing got upbeat reviews from Wall Street.

Amazon's (AMZN) stock climbed more than 4% to $341.62. The company just unveiled new products for its successful Amazon Web Services business, including new systems for collaboration and mobile.

"Cloud services is one area where Amazon has an early-mover advantage and where it keeps innovating at an accelerating pace," Jefferies analyst Brian Pitz told clients in a note.

But the tech sector was weighed down by slumping shares of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and IBM Corp. (IBM) each down a fraction. Chip giant Intel Corp. (INTC) also shed 0.3%, while Oracle (ORCL) slipped 0.1%.

On the upside, shares of Facebook Inc. (FB) and Twitter Inc. (TWTR) were each up more than 1%. Apple Inc. (AAPL) shares were up nearly 1%.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) gained 0.3% to 4,407. The benchmark was on track to end the week down nearly 2%.

The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was up a fraction, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) was mostly flat, last down 0.1%.

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