Wall Street higher as dollar lifts commodities
Stocks were higher as bullish comments about Greece caused the dollar to fall, resulting in strength in commodity prices. The dollar helped lift commodity prices, and oil gained 0.6 percent. The S&P Energy index rose 0.6 percent while Occidental Petroleum added 1.5 percent to US$106.60.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 51.16 points, or 0.41 percent, at 12,453.92. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 5.40 points, or 0.41 percent, at 1,331.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 7.82 points, or 0.28 percent, at 2,790.74.
Gains in heavyweight banks lifted European stocks on a report that lenders could evade part of the Basel III capital requirements, while technical indicators pointed to further short-term gains for equities.
Banks rose 1.1 percent after the Financial Times reported draft legislation could place a lighter burden than previously expected on the capital positions of European Union banks, and could allow lenders to count more of the capital in their insurance subsidiaries.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares rose 0.7 percent to 1,134.44 points.
The index dropped 0.1 percent in the previous session but managed to stay above its 200-day moving average line at 1,116.01 -- a bullish trend which helped cement today's gains.
The Nikkei stock average fell for its third straight week of losses, pulled lower by a drop in Sony Corp shares after the electronic giant's earnings outlook undershot analyst forecasts.
The benchmark Nikkei fell 0.4 percent to 9,521.94, meaning it shed 0.9 percent over the week. On the weekly Ichimoku chart, the bottom of the cloud comes in at above 9,600, posing immediate resistance.
The broader Topix shed 0.3 percent to 824.90, falling 0.3 percent on the week.
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