NEW YORK: US stock markets shrugged off higher oil prices and Japan's quake disaster this week to gain back some of the losses racked up since late February, helped by positive earnings reports from leading companies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 3.1 percent for the five days to end at 12,220.59.
The broad-based S&P 500 gained 2.7 percent to 1,313.80.
The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite outdid the others, after lagging for several weeks, gaining 3.8 percent to end at 2,743.06.
In a week that began with turmoil across North Africa and the Middle East -- especially in oil-exporting states like Yemen and Libya -- sending a fright into markets, traders opted to ignore politics for corporate news in the last sessions.
They also appeared to blow off the fall of Portugal's government, a move which killed its own markets-approved fiscal restructuring plan and made it highly possible the European Union would have to organize a rescue.
"Investors have been trying to measure the impact on global economy and earnings of those three events," said Hugh Johnson of Hugh Johnson Advisors.
"And the answer or message of the market is investors believe those three events will affect global economy and will affect earnings, but they will not derail the current bull market and economic expansion."
The market took a boost at the beginning of the week from AT&T's plan to buy T-Mobile USA in a $39 billion deal that would make it the country's largest cellphone carrier, and the US Treasury's decision to begin selling off $142 billion worth of mortgage-backed securities.
Both were seen as signs that markets are getting stronger, though AT&T still has to run the gauntlet of regulators.
The purchase of OptionsXpress by broker firm Charles Schwab, was "amplifying optimism about the collective corporate pocketbook," said Andrea Kramer of Schaeffer's Investment Research.
AT&T closed the week up 3.5 percent, while rival Verizon -- which would be demoted to the second largest cellphone carrier after the deal -- gave up 4.0 percent, and current number three Sprint-Nextel, which would be the biggest loser in the deal, dropped 7.3 percent.
But there was negative news at the biggest banks.
The Federal Reserve rejected Bank of America's plan to boost its dividend, effectively sending the bank back to the drawing board on its capital plan.
Citigroup got approval for its dividend plan, but it was a mere one cent a share and that after a reverse stock split that will reduce by 90 percent the number of outstanding shares.
Bank of America ended the week down 5.0 percent, while Citigroup lost 0.9 percent.
Friday's trading got a boost from better-than-forecast earnings from Oracle and Accenture.
Oracle shares closed the week up 6.1 percent, while Accenture added 8.0 percent for the period.
While the markets will continue to keep an eye on Japan and the Middle East next week, new US economic data could be what shapes trading, said analysts.
"The road to recovery from the Great Recession has not been smooth, and this past week was especially bumpy," said Patrick Newport at IHS Global Insight.
"More bumps in the road will show up in a couple of the reports next week, but we mostly expect good news."
Monday will bring data on personal consumption, income and prices. Tuesday will follow that with a reading on consumer confidence.
On Friday there will be new reads on the jobs market, manufacturing, construction and auto sales.
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