Traders talk next to electronic boards at the stock exchange in Madrid June 12, 2012. Spanish government bond yields rose close to euro-era highs on Tuesday as relief over a bailout for the country's banks quickly turned to concern over how easily it will be able to access debt markets in the longer term.Andrea Comas/Reuters
The Toronto stock market is higher as traders digest the latest inflation numbers and a downgrade by Moody's of some of the world's biggest banks.
The S&P/TSX is up 29.61 points at 11,437.93 after plunging more than 350 points on Thursday. The TSX Venture Exchange is down 6.48 points to 1,210.87.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.19 of a cent at 97.34 cents U.S. after a Statistics Canada report showed the country's inflation rate dropped to its lowest level in nearly two years.
The TSX financial sector lifted 0.2 per cent despite Moody's Investors Service moving to cut the credit ratings of 15 of the world's largest banks late Thursday, including Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Royal Bank.
U.S. stocks advanced modestly on Friday, as gains in banking shares helped the S&P 500 index rebound from its second-worst decline of the year.
The index dropped 2.2 per cent on Thursday, its biggest drop since a 2.5 per cent fall on June 1, as evidence mounted of slowing manufacturing growth worldwide, a threat to corporate profits.
After falling for two consecutive sessions, the S&P 500 index is down 0.9 per cent for the week, but remains on track for its first monthly gain in three months.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 65.70 points, or 0.52 per cent, at 12,639.27. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 6.01 points, or 0.45 per cent, at 1,331.52. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 10.08 points, or 0.35 per cent, at 2,869.17.
Oil rebounded to $90 a barrel on Friday after hitting an 18-month low but remained on course for a weekly loss of almost 8 per cent as reports suggesting slowing economic growth around the globe signalled weaker demand.
Markets are expected to see a volume spike at the close, just before Russell Investments sets the final rebalance of its indexes, in which $3.9 trillion in assets are benchmarked to globally.
With files from Reuters