The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the Dow are posting slim gains with two hours left in the trading session. At 1:58 p.m. the small-cap index was up 1.42 points, or 0.18%, to 781.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had added 16.42 points, or 0.12%, to 13,441.30.

Stocks spent the morning in negative territory but moved higher and pierced the flat line at about 12 p.m. ET, as investors put aside news of generally downcast economic statistics.

Industrial production increased 0.2% in August, the U.S. Federal Reserve reported before the opening bell. That’s less than the expected rise of 0.3% and below the upwardly revised increase of 0.5% in July.

Breaking down the numbers, manufacturing dropped 0.3%, interrupting five months of increases, while mining fell by 0.6%. On the plus side, unusually warm weather resulted in a 5.3% increase in the output of utilities.

In financial news, the latest sign that problems stemming from the subprime mess and the slump in the U.S. housing sector have gone global came from Europe. Northern Rock, the fifth largest mortgage lender in the United Kingdom, issued a statement this morning that it is having difficulty raising money on the wholesale money markets. The lender turned to the Bank of England for financial support to boost its liquidity.

Switching gears, bullish news came from United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). The Hartford, Conn.-based provider of high-technology products and services, a Dow component, received a brokerage upgrade.

Elsewhere, the price of oil has fallen about $0.24 to $79.85 a barrel on news that two refineries in Texas have resumed normal operations.