German Chancellor Angela Merkel underlined the need to take urgent steps to restore market confidence and took a tough stance against overspending and running up debt -- and the markets lapped it up.
After Ms. Merkel delivered a highly anticipated speech to Germany's parliament, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 1.6 per cent, France's CAC 40 gained 1.9 per cent and Germany's DAX climbed 1.7 per cent. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.5 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged 0.2 per cent higher.
Dow futures gained 157 points, while S&P 500 futures rose 17 points.
Canadian investors' day may be overshadowed, however, by news that Research in Motion Ltd. will take a $485-million (U.S.) hit in its third quarter because of the weak launch of its PlayBook tablet and won't meet full-year earnings targets. RIM shares fell 3.8 per cent in premarket trading on the NASDAQ, minutes after the news.
Ms. Merkel said that euro zone financial regulations had been violated too frequently and that EU treaty changes and stricter financial controls were needed. She also reiterated her objection to euro bonds, debt jointly backed by several euro zone countries.
She and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are due to meet Monday to discuss the treaty changes that can restore confidence in the euro's future. The talks will culminate in a Dec. 9 summit of EU leaders.
On Thursday, the head of the European Central Bank indicated that the bank stood ready to act more aggressively to fight Europe's debt crisis.
Gold rose $14.60 to $1,754.40 an ounce.
Copper gained almost 2 per cent and was on track for its first weekly gain in five weeks. It traded at $7,925 a tonne.
U.S. crude oil traded 0.9 per cent higher at $101.04 a barrel.
The Canadian dollar traded at 98.78 U.S. cents.