NEW YORK, July 13 (UPI) -- U.S. stock indexes were flat in early trading Friday after reaching record highs a day earlier.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 8.05 points, or 0.06 percent, at 13,853.68. The Nasdaq composite was down 4.01 points, or 0.15 percent, at 2,697.71 and the Standard & Poor's 500 slipped 2.44 points, or 0.16 percent, at 1,545.26.

Crude oil prices rose 85 cents to $73.35 a barrel.

Bonds rose. The 10-year note added 10/32, or $3.125 for every $1,000 invested, to yield 5.091 percent.

The dollar was mixed. The euro was trading at $1.3794 from $1.3781 late Thursday, while the dollar was at 122.01 yen from 122.50 yen.

Overseas, Tokyo's Nikkei closed up 1.4 percent at 18,238.

Retail sales take big tumble

WASHINGTON, July 13 (UPI) -- U.S. retail sales took their biggest tumble in two years last month while import prices swelled for a fourth straight month, government reports say.

Retail sales decreased 0.9 percent last month, the U.S. Commerce Department said, after a healthy 1.5 percent increase in May. The Wall Street Journal said the fall was far greater than expected.

Automobile and parts sales fell by 2.9 percent in June. All others dropped by 0.4 percent. June gasoline station sales decreased 1.1 percent.

In the case of import prices, observers saw the increase as suggesting an inflation risk in the United States.

Import prices rose 1 percent in June after climbing 1.1 in May, the U.S. Labor Department said.

Petroleum import prices advanced 4.7 percent last month compared to May, yet were only up 2.1 on the year. Excluding petroleum, import prices rose a more modest 0.2 percent in June.

ABN gets OK to sell LaSalle separately

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, July 13 (UPI) -- ABN Amro was given permission Friday to sell its U.S. bank, LaSalle of Chicago, to Bank of America without shareholder approval.

The ruling by the Dutch Supreme Court in Amsterdam, which overturned a lower court decision, apparently ended a 10-week legal battle over the sale of ABN, one of Europe's biggest banks. Proceedings had been held up over the LaSalle disposition.

And it likely set the stage for a head-on bidding war for control of ABN, the Financial Times said.

The ruling clears the way for ABN to complete the LaSalle sale separately from its own sale and also allows Barclays, the British bank which agreed on an all-share takeover of the Dutch bank without LaSalle, to formally launch its bid.

It also represented a setback for the rival consortium, led by the Royal Bank of Scotland, which wanted the whole package, including LaSalle.

Nissan recalls 140,000 Altimas

NEW YORK, July 13 (UPI) -- Nissan has recalled more than 140,000 of its popular Altima sedans to replace faulty air filters, the company announced Friday.

The filters could catch fire, Nissan said.

The voluntary recall affects 2007 Altimas with four-cylinder, 2.5-liter engines produced between September 2006 and May 2007, at Nissan's Smyrna, Tenn., plant and between October 2006 and May 2007 at Canton, Miss.