Canada's main stock index climbed higher, led by financials and techs, amid optimism of peace between both Koreas and expectations of a final North American Free Trade Agreement.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index forged ahead 23.03 points to reach noon at 15,660.62
The Canadian dollar eked up 0.06 cents to 77.73 cents U.S.
The largest percentage gainer on the TSX was Celestica, which rose 3.2%.
The heavyweight financial sector rose, boosted by Royal Bank of Canada and Bank of Nova Scotia both of which were up 0.5%.
The energy index was down as lower oil prices weighed on most energy companies. However, shares of Imperial Oil, which gained 2.6%, and Husky Energy, up about 1%, offset some of the index losses.
Imperial Oil reported a 55% rise in quarterly profit, as its refining and chemicals businesses benefited from cheaper raw materials.
Agnico Eagle Mines’ shares rose 0.1% after the company on Thursday said it is planning to divest all of its cobalt assets in Canada and that it sold some gold interests in the United States.
Air Canada offered to accommodate travelers of WestJet Airlines in the event of a labour disruption at the company. Shares of Air Canada were up 0.1%.
The largest decliner was Detour Gold Corp, down 26%, after the company reported first-quarter results.
North and South Korea announced they would work with the United States and China this year to declare an official end to the 1950s Korean War and seek an agreement on "permanent" and "solid" peace.
A deal on a new NAFTA is close at hand but talks to arrive at a finishing point are not easy, top Mexican officials said on Thursday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange added 1.56 points to 784.61
All but three of 12 TSX subgroups gained ground, as consumer staples gained 1.1%, information technology each soared 0.7%, and financials improved 0.6%.
The three laggards were energy, down 1.2%, materials, sliding 0.4%, and gold, down 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
The NASDAQ composite fell on Friday as technology stocks gave back initial gains while Amazon slipped from a record high set earlier in the session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell back 45.4 points by noon to 24,276.94
The S&P 500 inched up 1.01 points to 2,677.95,
The NASDAQ Composite index moved downward 0.07 points to 7,118.61, Apple, Netflix and Alphabet all dropped more than 1%. Earlier, it rose more than 1% on the back of strong earnings from Amazon. Tech shares initially rose broadly before falling nearly 1% as a sector.
Overall, the earnings season has been mostly positive. Of the S&P 500 companies that have reported quarterly results thus far, 79.4% have topped analyst expectations.
Microsoft and Intel both reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue Thursday after the bell, while Chevron and Colgate posted quarterly profits that beat expectations on Friday.
Stocks were also helped by strong economic data released Friday. The U.S. economy grew by 2.3% in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said. Economists expected a gain of 2%.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note gained, lowering yields to 2.96% from Thursday’s 2.99%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices sank 23 cents a barrel to $67.96 U.S.
Gold prices gained $4.90 to $1,322.80 U.S. an ounce.
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