Business and Finance

Global stock markets opened a risk-filled new year still smarting from a rough 2011, as many exchanges remained closed. German and French stocks rose in light volumes as a a reading of manufacturing activity in Europe improved.

Germany’s DAX closed up 3 percent Monday at 6,075 while the French CAC-40, which ended 2011 17 percent lower, climbed 2 percent to 3,222. Stocks fell in South Korea and closed flat in Taiwan.

Trading was light with the New York, London and most Asian stock exchanges closed.

Investors appeared to be reassured by European purchasing managers survey index numbers that improved in December from November. Activity in the manufacturing sector was up, but at levels that still show a fifth straight month of contraction.

Many of the world’s leading indexes are coming off a down year. Britain’s FTSE was off 5.6 percent by year end, Japan’s Nikkei fell 17 percent to its lowest close since 1982, and the Standard & Poor’s 500 showed zero gain.

Data releases later in the week such as eurozone inflation on Wednesday and German factory orders and U.S. non-farm payrolls on Friday will give traders more grist. The U.S. employment figure is expected to rise by some 150,000 after increasing 120,000 in November.

Markets face an uncertain first quarter as eurozone leaders try to get control of government debt woes that threaten to harm the global economy with another financial meltdown.

Much of the attention in coming weeks will center on Italy, the eurozone’s third-largest economy and the focal point of the eurozone’s struggle to deal with a crisis caused by heavy levels of government debt. Fears of default on those debts mean that bond investors demand ever-higher interest, making it a challenge for the new government of Prime Minister Mario Monti to roll over euro53 billion ($69 billion) in debt maturing in the first quarter cash advance. If a country can no longer borrow affordably to pay off bonds that are maturing, it faces eventual default or a bailout.

Debt woes may be compounded by at least a mild recession over the last quarter of 2011 and the first part of 2012.

In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi, which lost 11 percent of its value last year, closed nearly unchanged at 1,826.37. South Korea’s tech sector move higher, with Samsung Electronics up 2.1 percent and LG Electronics gaining 2.3 percent. Steel giant POSCO slid 1.1 percent and Korea Electric Power shed 1.8 percent.

Taiwan’s TAIEX, which was also open for business Monday, fell 1.7 percent to 6,952.21. Foxconn Technology, the world’s biggest contract electronics manufacturer, which makes iPads and iPhones for Apple Inc., fell 0.9 percent. Personal computer maker Acer Inc. shed 2.3 percent.

The Asian-Pacific region’s major benchmarks, including Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and Australia’s S&P ASX 200, were closed.

Last year was one that traders would prefer to forget: most Asian equity indexes closed out 2011 deeply in the red. The Nikkei in Tokyo ended the year at 8,429.45 _ its lowest closing since 1982.

China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, closed Monday, endured a 21 percent loss for the year as the impact of Beijing’s multibillion-dollar stimulus faded and the government tightened curbs on lending and investment to cool blistering economic growth.

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Questioned by senators he once served with, Jon Corzine told a panel Tuesday that he never told anyone to “misuse” customer money that vanished when MF Global collapsed this fall.

An estimated $1.2 billion in client funds are missing. Senators are demanding that Corzine and two other executives at the securities firm explain who authorized the transfer of money in the days before the firm collapsed in the eighth-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

“I never gave any instruction to anyone at MF Global to misuse customer funds,” Corzine testified at a hearing of the Senate Agriculture Committee on Tuesday.”

Corzine, a former Democratic New Jersey senator and governor, resigned as CEO of the securities firm last month.

Bradley Abelow, the firm’s president and chief operating officer, and Henri Steenkamp, the chief financial officer, also tried to distance themselves from any decision to transfer the money at the hearing.

Brokers are required to keep client money separate from company funds.

“Funds don’t simply disappear. Someone took action, whether legal or illegal, to move that money. And the effect of that decision is being felt across the countryside,” said Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts, the committee’s top Republican.

Roberts said MF Global violated “a sacred rule of the futures industry,” keeping customer funds separate from the firm’s _ and that it was the first time that had happened. “You don’t break the glass in regards to segregated funds.”

All three witnesses said they don’t know where the money is. Yet their phrasing varied in subtle ways that could have legal distinctions.

Corzine said he did not direct anyone to “misuse” the money.

Abelow said he does not recall “any conversation about customer funds being used for anything other than their intended purpose.”

Steenkamp’s stance was more sweeping. He said he did not “authorize, approve or know of any transfers of customer funds” out of their accounts.

Depending on the circumstances, transferring money from customers’ accounts could violate securities laws and, in some cases, could amount to a crime. Federal authorities have begun criminal investigations. And regulators are looking into whether the firm broke securities rules.

The executives said that given what is now known, they wouldn’t have signed the firm’s last quarterly financial statement attesting that its internal financial controls were adequate.

Under a 2002 anti-corporate-fraud law that Corzine co-wrote as a U.S. senator, the top executives of public companies must personally certify the accuracy of their company’s financial statements. It can be a violation of the law for executives to sign a false statement.

MF Global collapsed into the eighth-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history after a disastrous bet on European debt.

The three executives say that they didn’t become aware of the shortfall until hours before the firm filed for bankruptcy protection on Oct. 31.

Tuesday’s hearing included an added element of intrigue because Corzine, a former Democratic senator from New Jersey, was pressed by some senators he served with from 2000 through 2005.

The Senate panel is one of three congressional committees to have issued subpoenas to compel Corzine’s testimony on the issue. It marked the first time a former senator has been subpoenaed by his former peers in more than 100 years, according to the Senate historian’s office.

Many lawmakers have heard from farmers, ranchers and small business owners in their states who are missing money that was deposited with the firm. Agricultural businesses use brokerage firms like MF Global to help reduce their risks in an industry vulnerable to swings in oil, corn and other commodity prices.

Corzine told lawmakers last week that he never intended to authorize the transfer of funds from customer accounts. If any subordinates moved clients’ money in the belief that Corzine had authorized it, “it was a misunderstanding,” he said.

Corzine, Steenkamp and Abelow have been sued in class-action complaints on behalf of MF Global shareholders. The lawsuits accuse the executives of making false and misleading statements about MF Global’s financial strength and cash balances.

MF Global didn’t list the European debt on its balance sheet for all to see. Instead, those holdings were shifted to the company’s “off-balance sheet,” deep in its financial statements. Some separate filings with regulators excluded the European debt entirely.

A lawyer for the trustee overseeing the liquidation of MF Global’s brokerage operations said in court Friday that the trustee’s staff has discovered some “suspicious” trades in MF Global customer accounts that were made in the last days before the firm failed. The lawyer didn’t provide details.

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Robert Deluce is the president and chief executive officer of Porter Airlines. In our series on the financial habits of notable Canadians, Deluce told the Toronto Star’s Emily Mathieu what he learned working at his family’s hunting and fishing charter business, the significance of a 1956 Oldsmobile and why, when it comes to purchases and sales, almost everything is negotiable.s

How did your family influence your attitude toward money?

My family is very entrepreneurial, so I’ve always looked at finances from a business perspective. Whether as an individual or a household it’s important to understand your revenue streams and expenses, and to look for quality and value when making decisions about how to spend money wisely.

What is the best financial advice you ever received?

I’ve always had to earn my own money. Even though I was involved in a family business, there was no free ride for me or my eight siblings. My parents always made sure that we were compensated for the work we did. I appreciate the value of money because of this.

What lessons did you take away from your first job?

My parents started a hunting and fishing charter business in 1951 in Northern Ontario called White River Air Services. I later boarded as a student at St. Michael’s College School in Toronto and worked at the family business when I went home during summer holidays. I would pump gas, load aircraft and do other odd jobs while learning the ropes as a teenager. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that was my apprenticeship for running a business, and an airline in particular.

What was the first item you purchased with your own money?

The first item of any significance was the purchase of an old 1956 Oldsmobile from my grandfather for $500. This was in 1968 while I was attending McGill University.

What has been your savviest investment?

The purchase of a home in 1987 from an investment banker on the day after the stock market tumbled. After doing a really light “freshen up” renovation, which consisted primarily of interior paint, we resold the house six months later for about $400,000 more than we had paid for it.

What is your worst spending habit?

Like many people, my morning coffee is a habit that adds up. Of course, I have to have the premium drinks, which makes it worse.

How do you prefer to pay, cash, card or debit?

Credit card. It helps me keep track of expenses and I always pay the full balance every month. Cash is my back up. I never use debit cards.

What hard financial lessons have you learned?

Never leave yourself with only one supplier; you must have choice and some tension to ensure value.

What is your best money-saving advice?

Everything is negotiable. Rarely should you pay the sticker price for a product or service. You can get a better price simply by asking, comparing suppliers, buying in larger quantities or employing other strategies. Sometimes you can negotiate more value by having upgrades or bonus items included in the cost. If you’re somewhere, like in a grocery store, where this doesn’t usually apply, you can still save money by planning ahead and buying staple items when they’re on sale before you absolutely need them and have no choice but to pay the going rate that day. Never be in a hurry to conclude the transaction. And if you are buying a car, absolutely do not ask for a certain colour as your first item of discussion.

Are there any money saving tips you can pass on to travellers?

It’s important to know what you’re getting for your ticket when flying. You can usually choose from various fare types and each one gives you different benefits. Buying the lowest fare usually means you’ll have to pay extra to make changes later on, but you save upfront. A premium fare has things like this built into the upfront price. You should purchase according to your needs and be aware of fees if they’re required for baggage, seat selection, etc. We try to offer real value at Porter by including certain amenities that other airlines either don’t offer or make you pay for.

Do you worry about retirement?

I don’t plan on retiring anytime soon, but I do have a financial plan.

Are money and success the same thing?

I don’t think so. There are a lot of ways to make money, but success is something that you earn. Most successful people also have a sense of accomplishment. This may come from building a business or contributing to a cause where there is also benefit to others, not just you. Often this has nothing to do with making money or your total net worth.

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A safety investigation of the lithium-ion batteries in General Motors Co.’s Chevrolet Volt is under way to assess the risk of fire in the electric car after a serious crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday.

One Volt battery pack that was being closely monitored following a government crash test caught fire Thursday, the safety administration said in a statement. Another crash-tested battery emitted smoke and sparks, the statement said.

GM, which was informed of the investigation on Friday, said in a statement that the Volt “is safe and does not present undue risk as part of normal operation or immediately after a severe crash.”

The fires are in addition to a battery fire in a crash-tested Volt six months ago.

NHTSA learned of a possible fire risk involving damaged Volt batteries in June when a fire erupted in a Volt that was being stored in a parking lot a test facility in Burlington, Wis. The fire was severe enough to cause several other vehicles parked nearby to catch fire as well.

The car had been subjected to a side-impact crash test more than three weeks earlier, on May 12, during which the battery was damaged and its coolant line ruptured.

Last week’s tests of three battery packs were designed to replicate the May test. In that test, the Volt was subjected to a simulated side-impact collision into a narrow object like a tree or pole followed by a rollover, the agency said.

The first battery tested last week didn’t catch fire. But a battery test on Nov. 17 initially experienced a temporary temperature increase, and on Thursday caught fire. Another battery tested on Nov. 18, which was rotated 180 degrees within hours after the test, began to smoke and emit sparks shortly after the rotation payday advance online.

The tests were conducted by NHTSA and the Energy and Defense departments at a defense facility near Hampton Roads, Va.

So far, no fires have been reported in Volts involved in roadway crashes, NHTSA said. More than 5,000 of the vehicles have been sold.

It’s too soon to tell whether the investigation will lead to a recall of any vehicles or parts, but the government will ensure consumers are informed promptly if that occurs, the agency said.

With electronic safety systems that are part of the car, “GM knows real time about any crash significant enough to potentially compromise battery integrity,” the automaker said. “Since July, GM has implemented a post-crash protocol that includes the depowering of the battery after a severe crash, returning the battery to a safe and low-powered state.”

Electric vehicles are critical to President Barack Obama’s plans to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. He has called for putting 1 million of the vehicles on the road by 2015.

Safety testing hasn’t raised concerns about electric vehicles other than the Volt, NHTSA said.

“NHTSA continues to believe that electric vehicles have incredible potential to save consumers money at the pump, help protect the environment, create jobs and strengthen national security by reducing our dependence on oil,” the agency said.

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Europe failed to get the leaders of the world’s wealthiest economies to help out with its debt troubles, but everyone left a G-20 summit Friday relieved that at least they forced the Greek prime minister not to hold the world hostage with a bailout vote.

It took a public berating of Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, and Greece’s politics are in upheaval as a result, but the shaky bailout plan appears back on track for now.

Investors had been hoping the Group of 20 nations would lend the struggling eurozone a helping hand _ but the G-20 leaders said Europe needs to help itself first. They said the International Monetary Fund could be beefed up to help more, but not for at least three more months.

The debt crisis that rocked the 17-nation currency union for the past two years has reached a new high and now threatens to push the world economy into a second recession.

Despite the political firepower at the summit _ which included the leaders of Europe, China, Russia, Brazil, India and the United States, among others _ meeting was overshadowed by political turmoil in Greece and worries about Italy, which accepted IMF supervision of its reform efforts.

The IMF move was an highly unusual intervention into the affairs of one of the world’s leading economies.

Europe’s own rescue efforts, cobbled together at several crisis meetings last week, left open many important questions, making cash-rich countries like China, Russia or Brazil reluctant to commit more than just words.

“It’s important that the IMF sees its resources reinforced,” Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, told reporters. However, any decisions on how to reinforce the IMF were left until February.

The lack of detail disappointed markets, with stocks, bonds and the euro falling. Italy’s borrowing rates, in particular, hit worrying new highs.

With their own finances already stretched from bailing out Greece, Ireland and Portugal _ and traditional allies like the United States wrestling with their own problems _ eurozone countries were looking to the IMF to use its financial reserves and rescue experience to help prevent the debt crisis from spreading to its larger economies, such as Italy and Spain.

The most likely way the eurozone could still get additional financing is through a special account under the auspices of the IMF, into which individual countries could make payments. Those investments in turn could then be used to boost the currency union’s own bailout fund, the euro440 billion ($606 billion) European Financial Stability Facility.

But German Chancellor Angela Merkel and IMF chief Christine Lagarde both said that at the two-day meeting not a single country made a firm commitment that it would participate payday loans with no fax.

The broader increase of the IMF’s resources, which also remained vague, is designed to help countries around the world, not just the eurozone.

Barroso said several countries had indicated they would provide bilateral loans to the IMF _ which would give it more funds without collecting money from reluctant members like the U.S.

The G-20 final statement also said the IMF should somehow issue more special drawing rights, or SDRs, the fund’s own reserve currency that can be exchanged for cash with central banks around the world. SDRs can just be created and do not require new commitments from IMF member states.

Finance ministers will now have to work out the details of these measures. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the G-20 would next deal with the topic in February.

The lack of progress on the debt crisis troubled some countries that would be hard hit by another recession in the eurozone.

“Every day that the eurozone crisis continues, every day it isn’t resolved, is a day that has a chilling effect on the rest of the world economy,” said British Prime Minister David Cameron. “We are ready to do our part to help stabilize the world economy. … But you can’t ask the IMF or other countries to substitute for the action that needs to be taken within the eurozone itself.”

The G-20 announcements show how dramatically the powers have shifted within the IMF.

Until two years ago, the IMF _ dominated by the traditional powers in Europe and the U.S. _ mostly applied its painful financial adjustment programs to poor and emerging economies in Asia, Latin America and Africa.

Now, it’s growing powers like China, Brazil and South Africa that have to decide whether helping Europe is a worthy investment.

In an effort to do just that, Italy, the eurozone’s third largest economy with a debt load of 120 percent of gross domestic product, asked the IMF for help monitoring promised budgetary and structural reforms on a quarterly basis.

The country’s borrowing rates have risen sharply this week _ and jumped further on Friday _ on fears that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi does not have the political strength to implement the reforms.

Lagarde said the IMF hopes to start checking whether Italian measures promised to the eurozone are actually implemented by the end of November, to target “a lack of credibility.”

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The European Union’s plan to force international airlines to buy permits for their carbon dioxide emissions is in line with international law, Europe’s highest court said in a preliminary opinion Thursday.

Several U.S. and Canada-based airlines and airlines associations had sued the EU for its plan to include them in the emissions trading scheme as of next year. Under that plan, all airlines would have to have emissions permits for flights to and from EU airports. So far only large factories and power plants are part of the scheme.

Among several complaints, the airlines had argued that the EU did not have the jurisdiction to require permits for emissions produced during the entire flight, or even stretches that cross the air space of non-EU countries.

But the ECJ’s Advocate General Juliane Kokott disagreed with their arguments Thursday.

“The inclusion of international aviation in the EU emissions trading scheme is compatible with the provisions and principles of international law invoked,” she said in her opinion to the court. The advocate general’s opinion is not binding for the court but is followed in most cases.

The emissions trading scheme is the EU’s main tool in its fight against climate change. The EU has argued that it planned to include all airlines into its scheme since most other major states and regions do not have a similar system. Forcing only European airlines to buy permits would have put them at a competitive disadvantage compared to their foreign competitors and undermined the effectiveness of the scheme.

“I am glad to see that the Advocate General’s opinion concludes that (the) EU Directive is fully compatible with international law,” the EU’s Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard said. “The EU reaffirms its wish to engage constructively with third countries during the implementation of this legislation.”

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Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez tossed a softball overhand with gusto Thursday, said his latest medical checks have been stellar and ridiculed rumors that his health might have taken a turn for the worse.

Chavez said he is bouncing back vigorously from chemotherapy and gaining weight more than three months after he had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his pelvic region. He declined to say what type of cancer he was diagnosed with.

“You want me to tell you more? What for?” Chavez said when asked about the cancer at a news conference. “Go to the hospital and ask any person who has cancer: … ‘What is it that you have? And what type is it?’ Isn’t there something morbid in that?”

“I had a tumor. Now, what do you want me to tell you? That I take the tumor and explain to you here what type of tumor it was and the causes?” Chavez said. “I’m not going to gratify you. A malignant tumor. What more do you all want? … I had it here, they extracted it.”

Chavez motioned to the area where he said the tumor was removed, indicating a vertical incision on his abdomen crossing his waist line. The president said he saw images of the tumor, which was about the size of a baseball, and he held up a baseball as he described the operation.

He reiterated that all of his medical checks have shown no sign of any resurgence of the cancer.

“My latest tests, all of them, have shown very positive results,” he said.

“Here I am. I’m not in my best shape,” Chavez acknowledged, saying that is to be expected after chemotherapy. But he also said he has been lifting weights and is recovering smoothly.

“I’m my own response. And the life I lead from now on, with the grace of God, will be the response, the new Chavez,” said the president, who is running for re-election in 2012.

Chavez dismissed a report in a U.S. newspaper, El Nuevo Herald of Miami, that cited anonymous sources saying he had been hospitalized and that his condition might be deteriorating. He read aloud portions of the report to journalists outside the doors of the presidential palace.

“They’ve got me on dialysis,” Chavez said with a laugh, denying it.

Chavez had been largely out of sight since returning from Cuba last week after a fourth round of chemotherapy that he has said would be his last.

He said in a telephone call broadcast on television earlier Thursday that he is taking steroids and other medicines as he recovers from the chemotherapy.

He said he is working at “half throttle” while the effects of the treatment pass.

“I’m going to completely get out of this soon,” Chavez said.

The 57-year-old leader said his body has coped well with chemotherapy and assured Venezuelans he will keep them informed.

“I would be the first … to communicate any difficulty in the process. None beyond the normal has come up,” Chavez said.

Chavez has provided regular updates on his condition since he announced in a prerecorded video aired June 30 that he had undergone surgery for cancer. He said later that the surgery to remove the tumor was performed June 20.

The president’s critics have complained that he has kept secret some key details about his illness.

Chavez said he has provided ample information. He reiterated that his tumor had been “encapsulated” when it was removed and it hadn’t affected his colon or organs.

“I had cancer, in a ball that was removed,” Chavez said, holding up the baseball.

Later, he pitched a softball to his foreign minister outside the palace, smiling and throwing his weight behind each toss.

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Supporters of President Hugo Chavez shaved their heads in solidarity with their leader’s struggle against cancer on Sunday as hundreds prayed and sang at a televised event.

Barbers shaved off the hair of several men and at least one woman while the crowd swayed to a religious song. Chavez, bald from chemotherapy, smiled, clapped with the music and waved to the crowd.

Those attending included a group of six from the Dominican Republic who shaved their heads outside the Venezuelan Embassy in their country on Friday. Chavez greeted the Dominicans with hugs and stood arm-in-arm with them.

Pro-Chavez lawmaker Robert Serra said in a message on Twitter that “Venezuelan young people and priests cut their hair… in solidarity.”

Young men with close-cropped hair stood in the crowd as shouts of “Hallelujah!” and “Amen!” rose at the end of a song.

Leidy Jimenez, one of the Dominicans, told state television that their decision to shave their heads was “a gesture of love and of strength for the president.”

Chavez blew a kiss to the crowd, and listened as a priest, a minister and others spoke. “Long live Hugo Chavez!,” one Dominican man told the crowd.

Chavez praised the Christian group from the Dominican Republic in a newspaper column Saturday, saying “may God bless you.” The Dominicans arrived in Venezuela on Saturday night to meet with the president.

Chavez also said in his column that tests show his body has been responding well to chemotherapy. He said he was preparing for a “possible” new round of chemotherapy and that all of his hair had fallen out as a result of the treatment.

Chavez returned from his latest round of chemotherapy in Cuba on Aug. 14.

He underwent surgery in Cuba in June that removed a cancerous tumor from his pelvic region. He has not specified where the tumor was located. He has said the chemotherapy aims to ensure no malignant cells reappear.

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Stocks in the United States ended higher on Friday as the markets found their bearings, ending one of the most tumultuous weeks on Wall Street in years.

There was little sign of the volatility seen in the previous four days, and stocks wavered within a relatively tight range. But the indexes failed to fully recover from the week’s wild swings.

“We didn’t fall off a cliff,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist of Key Private Bank. “We are in a market that is trying to bottom, after a gut-wrenching slide, and going into a weekend where people can take a look at it.”

The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index was up 6.17 points, or 0.53 percent, at 1,178.81. It was 1.7 percent lower for the week. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 125.71 points, or 1.13 percent at 11,269.02 and the Nasdaq rose 0.61 percent to 2.507.98.

American stock markets were wildly volatile in the previous four trading sessions, with alternating days of collapsing and then sharply rising prices. There was a 4.4 percent decline on Wednesday and a 4.6 percent climb on Thursday. The mood has swung between speculation about worries over the economy and a renewed financial crisis, and confidence that banks are healthy and corporate profits strong.

“It seems like we have a continuing trend of lighter volume, with successively lower volume in the rise and the fall, which is typical of the market bottoming out,” said McCain.

Analysts and traders said the turmoil was driven by intensifying worries over European sovereign debt; the congressional impasse over the debt ceiling; and revisions to economic data, particularly with respect to gross domestic product, that raised concerns over another recession.

The Standard & Poor’s downgrade of the nation’s credit rating last week also weighed on the markets. But many said the selling was driven by emotion, and that the S&P move had been discounted or paled in comparison to other factors, especially the economy and developments in Europe.

Traders suggested a modest drop in claims for unemployment insurance in the United States and reassurances from French officials that their country’s banks were safe may have helped stocks on Thursday. And on Friday, when trading volume was 4.8 billion shares, investors sifted through new data on the economy, including insights into consumer behavior, a crucial element in trying to gauge the pace of the recovery.

The Commerce Department said retail sales rose 0.5 percent in July. Without the volatile automobile and gas components, sales increased 0.3 percent. The figures included several revisions, but they suggested there was some spending momentum in the second quarter and the beginning of the current quarter, at least.

But another piece of data that is indicative of where the market could swing was a survey by the University of Michigan that showed consumer sentiment dipped in August, registering 54.9 points on its index, which was lower than during the crisis of November 2008.

“Clearly, recent financial market turmoil has weighed heavily on sentiment, which was already under pressure from a dysfunctional political arena and the longer-term issue of an ailing labor market,” said Joshua Shapiro, the chief United States economist for MFR, in a research note.

At times, the VIX or “fear index,” a measure of volatility in the market, declined to its lowest point this week. The VIX was 36.87.

United States benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were lower, to 2.24 percent from 2.34 percent on Thursday.

“Going forward, the recent news in the stock market is not a good thing for consumer confidence and spending,” said Chris Christopher Jr., the senior principal economist for IHS Global Insight. “The swings in the equity markets are making consumers very nervous.”

But Christopher and other economists have noted that the recent declines in oil prices will offer some relief to Americans.

Industrial stocks led the way on the S&P 500, up almost 2 percent, with General Electric up more than 1 percent. Financial stocks pulled back by late afternoon, showing slight losses, but Bank of America was about 1 percent higher.

The gain in stocks came well after investors had digested the latest economic data. Timothy Hoyle, director of research for Haverford Investments, said that the markets took a step down in early trading when the consumer sentiment report was released, but that the figure was not unexpected considering recent bad economic data and some of the developments in financial markets.

Speaking about the market on Friday, he said: “Everyone is suffering from volatility fatigue.”

“We are stuck in a trading range until we have a credible backstop in Europe,” he said. “The market is extremely cheap but there is a lack of confidence in forward earnings estimates.”

American stocks picked up the pace from Europe, where markets got a lift from the imposition of temporary bans on negative bets against financial stocks in four countries. By the close of trading, the Euro Stoxx 50 index of euro zone blue chips was up more than 4 percent, and the FTSE 100 index in London was up 3.04 percent. The CAC 40 index in Paris was also up 4.02 percent, and the DAX in Frankfurt was up 3.45 percent. Asian stocks had a lackluster trading day.

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