(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) U.S. stocks rose slightly Friday as oil rebounded with markets poised to post three positive sessions in a row for solid weekly gains after the Dow surged 421 points yesterday pushing the average's two-day rally to 4.2% -- the biggest in over three years.
As of noon in New York the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 7 points to 17785 while the Nasdaq added 12 points to 4760 and the S&P 500 climbed 5 points to 2066.
World markets are ending their last full week of 2014 on a high as European shares booked their strongest week of the year on the back of the Fed's "patient" approach to hiking interest rates and as investors start to see the advantages of lower oil and fuel costs.
Oil prices moved higher Friday with January crude up $1.72 or 3.2% at $55.87 a barrel after ending Thursday down more than 4%. The Saudi oil minister said OPEC can't cut output without the support of other big producers.
While there was no significant economic data on the calendar today Friday marks "quadruple witching" which is the quarterly expiration of futures and options that tends to bring volatility to markets.
In corporate activity struggling smartphone maker BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY) dropped more than 4% after reporting quarterly revenue that fell short of estimates. It managed to post a small adjusted profit and positive cash flow however.
() shares jumped over 9% after the company reported third quarter profit of 60 cents per share well topping expectations for 54 cents per share.
Nike () also beat estimates with earnings and revenue last night and said global future orders were 11% higher excluding currency changes disappointing analysts. Shares tumbled more than 3.3% on Friday.
In other stock news () has agreed to sell its IT outsourcing business to Atos of France for $1.05 billion with the deal expected to close in the first half of next year.
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) investors have a chance to sell shares today with the expiration of the first lock-up period taking place Thursday. The Chinese e-commerce giant's IPO earlier this year was the biggest on record.
(NYSE:APP) has reportedly been approached by private equity firm Irving Place Capital for a possible takeover according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The clothing company earlier this week fired founder Dov Charney and appointed a new CEO. Shares jumped over 7% today.
Shares of Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) rose 3% after the lender announced late Thursday that the Treasury Department launched an offering to sell its remaining shares in the company marking the exit of Ally from the Troubled Asset Relief Program or TARP.
European shares settled mostly lower Friday weighed down by stocks of BASF SE and Air France-KLM but still posted a strong week. Asian markets finished higher supported by the Fed. Gold futures for February delivery edged up $2 to $1197 an ounce in electronic trading in New York.
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