Oil prices jumped to a record high, sparking Bay Street to its third-consecutive winning session, while Wall Street closed out the week almost 100 points lower as it grappled with possibility of rising inflation and the prospect of higher interest rates.

At close, the Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index was up 26.25 points or 0.27% to 9638.63 — a gain of 1.1% on the week. The TSX Venture Exchange finished 18.05 points or 0.96% higher at 1904.51.

The Dow Jones industrial average slid 99.46 points or 0.95%, at 10404.30, for a 0.37% loss on the week. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 7.67 points or 0.65% at 1172.92. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 14.42 points or 0.72% at 1984.81.

The Canadian dollar was down 0.35 of a cent to US82.32¢ late in the day.

On the TSX, the catalyst once again was oil prices, which gained 4.4% on the week. On Friday, crude oil for May delivery rose $1.87 or 3.4% to US$57.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest close since trading began in 1983. Gasoline for May delivery climbed 6.79¢ or 4.1 percent, to US$1.731 a gallon in New York, the highest since the contract was introduced in 1984. Prices touched $1.736 a gallon, an intraday record. New York crude oil touched US$57.70 a barrel during the session, surpassing the previous record of US$57.60 that was reached on March 17.

The TSX energy sector advanced 1.94%, with Encana Corp. one of the bigger gainers, adding $2.09 or 2.45% to $87.52.

Gold shares also were up 0.2%, while the heavyweight financial shares held back the TSX, slipping 0.42%.

On Wall Street, U.S. stocks fell victim to concern over rising inflation and the prospect of higher interest rates, with blue chips pacing the decline as shares of American International Group slumped on regulatory concerns.

Stocks initially rallied as a weaker-than-expected March employment report eased fears the Federal Reserve would adopt a more aggressive stance on raising interest rates.

The U.S economy added a modest 110,000 jobs in March, the Labor department reported. The number was well short of expectations. Economists had forecast payrolls to grow by about 221,000 in March. The unemployment rate however fell to 5.2 percent from 5.4 percent in February.

Factory activity in the United States decelerated slightly in March, the Institute for Supply Management reported Friday. The ISM index slipped to 55.2% in March from 55.3% in February.

The drop was not as large as expected. The consensus forecast of estimates collected was for the index to slip to 55.0. Readings above 50 indicate expansion.

However, the ISM’s prices paid index showed a reading of 73 points, up from 65.5 in February and well above economist forecasts of 66.

American International shares tumbled to a two-year low on Friday as investigations into the insurer expanded and three more staffers in its legal department quit their jobs. AIG, which this week admitted to a broad range of improper accounting, has been under investigation by state and federal authorities over transactions ranging from a 2000-2001 deal with Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway to dubious relationships with offshore reinsurers.

American International shares, the most active on the NYSE, lost $4.46 or 8.05% to $US50.95.