TSX rebounds after string of losses

The Toronto stock market closed higher Friday as traders bought up stocks beaten down by three straight days of losses triggered by another round of concern about the pace of the global economic recovery. The S&P/TSX composite index gained 52.82 points to 12,392.18 and the TSX Venture Exchange was up 16.63 points to 1,566.39.

Research In Motion Ltd. shares were up 94 cents, or 6.87 per cent to $14.63, after its chief executive said the Blackberry maker needs substantial change after posting a $125-million (U.S.) quarterly loss. RIM’S revenue fell $1.4 billion to $4.2 billion as the company loses market share to Apple’s iphone and devices using Google’s Android operating system.

The Canadian dollar dipped 0.08 of a cent (U.S.) to100.25 cents, a day after the Conservative government announced it is trimming $5.2 billion in annual federal spending and cutting thousands of public sector jobs while raising the age of eligibility for old age security to 67 from 65, starting a decade from now. The Dow Jones industrial was ahead 66.22 points to 13,212.04. The Nasdaq composite index was 3.79 points lower to 3,091.57 and the S&P 500 index rose 5.19 points to 1,408.47. On Friday, the May crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange climbed 24 cents to $103.02 after losing more than $4 over the last two sessions. The base metals sector was ahead 0.88 per cent while copper rose three cents to $3.83 a pound after losing over nine cents earlier in the week.