NEW YORK, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- U.S. stocks took cold comfort Friday from falling oil prices as most equities slid toward a break-even point for the year.

The Dow Jones industrial average was off 47.30 or 0.44 percent to 10,737.52 in late-morning trading. The Nasdaq composite slid 13.93 or 0.63 percent to 2,204.23, and the Standard & Poor's 500 fell 6.30 or 0.50 percent to 1,248.12.

The nation's major indexes were on track to post virtually no gains in 2005 as petroleum prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange declined.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury note lost 1/32, or 31 cents for every $1,000 invested, to yield 4.362 percent.

The dollar fell to 117.69 yen from 117.83, but the euro eased to $1.1798 from $1.1847.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed at 16,111.43 after sliding 232.77 or 1.42 percent.

IEA rips Baltic Sea pipeline project

MOSCOW, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- The energy watchdog founded by industrial nations after Arab nations launched an oil embargo is sounding alarms over Russia's plans for Europe's gas supply.

One of the world's largest natural gas producers, Russia is building a pipeline under the Baltic Sea directly to Germany in a venture that Poland and its Baltic state neighbors see as a prelude to commodity-based blackmail.

The Kremlin has responded to such concerns by hiring former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who helped negotiate the project, as chairman of the so-called North European Gas Pipeline.

But this week, the International Energy Agency took its first public stand on the pipeline, and it was distinctly alarmist, MosNews said Friday.

The group's chief economist said there is no financial rationale for a $2 billion, 744-mile undersea pipeline that skirts northeastern Europe. While the Kremlin says it will "secure" Poland's energy supplies, "We dismiss that argument," said IEA Chief Economist Fatih Birol.

Nor is their any geopolitical reason for Germany to make itself as abjectly dependent on the Kremlin for natural gas as the pipeline will make it, Briol said.

"This is worrying and puts Germany's energy safety at risk."

Arcelor pays $1.2B for stake in Erdemir

NEW YORK, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Arcelor, the world's second-largest steel maker, is paying $1.2 billion for a big stake in a Turkish steel producer.

The money gets Luxembourg-based Arcelor a 20-percent interest in Erdemir, MarketWatch reported Friday. That will boost Arcelor's stake in Erdemir to about 25 percent.

Last year Erdemir produced some 3.6 million metric tons of steel, much of which it sold to the world's biggest carmakers.

The deal is subject to Turkish regulatory approval, which is expected.

Malaysians to control big Indian telecom

NEW DELHI, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Malaysia's biggest telecommunications company and an Indian conglomerate are paying $1.08 billion to buy a Tamil Nadu-based cell phone operator.

Maxis Communications Bhd. and the Chennai-based Reddy family's Apollo Group (NASDAQ:APOL) will acquire a 100-percent stake in Aircel, which has headquarters in southern India, the Press Trust of India reported Friday.

The buyers will inject $280 million of the purchase price into Aircel as operating cash.

Upon completion of the deal, Maxis will hold a 74-percent stake in Aircel directly, the most allowed under current Indian law, while the Reddy family will hold the balance of the interest in Aircel.