* Global stocks up for 4th session on earnings hopes
* Euro pulls back from near 2-month high vs dollar
* Gold jumps over 1 pct on economic woes, bargain buying
* Oil ends above $76 a barrel and gains 5.5 pct for week
(Updates with U.S. markets' close)
By Walter Brandimarte
NEW YORK, July 9 (Reuters) - Global stocks rose on Friday,
recording their best week in nearly a year, while oil prices climbed
on hopes that U.S. companies will report strong earnings next week.
But investors were still cautious in the run-up to the earnings
season, buying U.S. dollars and gold, which rallied more than 1
percent. The earnings season starts on Monday, when Alcoa <AA.N>, one
of the 30 stocks in the Dow, reports after the closing bell.
Wall Street ended the session near the day's highs, but volume
was the lowest of the year.
The three major U.S. stock indexes traded flat to modestly higher
for most of the session, with brief forays into negative territory as
investors remained cautious due to fears of a double-dip recession.
But late in the afternoon, buyers scooped up some beaten-down
U.S. stocks in anticipation of a healthy earnings season and a sharp
rally took shape in the final hour.
"Everyone is anxious to see whether earnings are good enough to
outweigh some of the more significant macroeconomic trends we're
facing," said Jordan Posner, senior portfolio manager at Matrix Asset
Advisors in New York.
"Everyone is marking time until we get some numbers," he added.
The MSCI world equity index <.MIWD00000PUS> rose 0.61 percent
during the session, boosting its weekly gain to 5.1 percent -- the
highest since the 6.6 percent increase recorded in the week ending
July 18, 2009.
The FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top European shares also
finished Friday's session with a 0.61 percent to end at 1,021.78. For
the week, the index rose 5.4 percent, its biggest weekly advance
since July 2009. Shares of miners and metal producers led gains on
hopes for strong demand from China and positive quarterly results
from U.S. aluminium giant Alcoa.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> gained 59.04 points, or
0.58 percent, to end at 10,198.03, while the Standard & Poor's 500
Index <.SPX> rose 7.71 points, or 0.72 percent, to finish at
1,077.96. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> gained 21.05 points, or
0.97 percent, to close at 2,196.45.
Alcoa's stock jumped 2.1 percent to $10.94. Google Inc <GOOG.O>
climbed 2.4 percent to $467.46 after Beijing gave it the green light
to continue operating its China search page.
But sentiment remained fragile as many investors worry the global
economy could slip back into recession. Even with the gains of the
last four days, the S&P 500 is still down 11.5 percent from its most
recent closing high in late April. For an analysis on fears of a
double dip, see [].
Underscoring the rise of concerns about the global economy, fund
tracker EPFR reported on Thursday that equity funds worldwide had
outflows of more than $11 billion in the first week of July.
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Money market funds, considered as a safer investment alternative,
received $33.5 billion during the same week, their largest inflows in
18 months.
EURO RESUMES SLIDE
The euro fell against the dollar as investors pocketed some
proceeds from the rally that had taken the single currency to its
highest level in more than two months.
Traders said the euro was unable to remain above the key
resistance level of $1.27 due to lingering worries about the
euro-zone economy.
"Since the $1.1877 June low, the euro has rallied an impressive
6.1 percent," said Camilla Sutton, a currency strategist at Scotia
Capital in Toronto. "However, near-term risks continue to loom and we
will see another bout of euro weakness."
The single European currency <EUR=> was down 0.41 percent at
$1.2641 from a previous session close of $1.2693.
On Thursday, the single currency got a lift after Jean-Claude
Trichet, the European Central Bank president, said the euro zone's
economy performed much better in the second quarter. However, he also
said the region would grow "at a moderate and still uneven pace in an
environment of high uncertainty."
The dollar was also up against a basket of major currencies, with
the U.S. Dollar Index <.DXY> up 0.18 percent.
Against the Japanese yen, the greenback <JPY=> was up 0.25
percent at 88.60.
U.S. Treasury prices fell as the rally in global stocks reduced
the safe-haven allure of government bonds. Investors also unloaded
some government debt on Friday to makde room for $69 billion worth of
coupon-bearing supply next week.
The U.S. Treasury Department will sell $35 billion in three-year
debt on Monday, $21 billion in 10-year notes on Tuesday and $13
billion in 30-year bonds on Wednesday.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note <US10YT=RR> was down
6/32 in price, with the yield at 3.0592 percent.
U.S. crude oil <CLc1> rose 65 cents, or 0.86 percent to settle at
$76.09 per barrel -- the highest settlment since the close at $75.63
on June 30. For the week, crude oil futues gained 5.5 percent -- the
most since late May.
In Friday's session, gold prices rose more than 1 percent.
Some investors were cautious about the U.S. earnings season and
others found the metal attractively priced. Spot gold <XAU=> jumped
1.14 percent, to $1,210.00 an ounce.
(Additional reporting by Jan Harvey in London and Ryan Vlastelica,
Vivianne Rodrigues and Richard Leong in New York; Editing by Jan
Paschal)
