US stocks jump on hopes of Greek fix

NEW YORK: US stocks rallied as markets opened Friday amid hopes that Europe was on its way to resolving the Greek debt crisis and positive data on the US economy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 101.65 points (0.85 percent) to 12,063.17 in the first half-hour of trading.

The broader S&P 500 index rose 10.89 points (0.86 percent) to 1,278.53, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 14.47 points (0.55 percent) to reach 2,638.17.

Markets rallied after German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for swift action on a new Greek rescue package and Greece's prime minister appointed a new finance minister.

"The acquiescence of Germany and France... has created a ray of hope that Greece will be able to avoid a debt default that could have systemic implications for European banks," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com.

The US economy also appeared poised to benefit from a drop in the price of oil, as New York futures for light, sweet crude fell below $94 per barrel, suggesting some relief from high gasoline prices.

The index of leading economic indicators rose 0.8 percent in May, the first time it had gained in 10 months, according to a monthly report from the Conference Board.

Nonetheless, the weakness of the world's largest economy remained evident as a survey from the University of Michigan showed that US consumer confidence had fallen in June.

Shares of Research in Motion, maker of the BlackBerry, plunged more than 16 percent after the mobile-device company released a disappointing earnings report.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose to 2.94 percent from 2.91 percent on Thursday, while that on the 30-year bond rose to 4.19 percent from 4.16 percent.

Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011