Markets closed higher on Friday as a strong outlook from chip-makers Nvidia and Intel boosted tech stocks.The S&P/TSX composite index gained 29.26 points to close at 6,650.03. For the week, the benchmark index rose 0.5%.

Buoyed by a positive outlook from U.S. chip-makers, the TSX information technology sector rose 1.7%.

ATI Technologies led the sector, climbing 70¢ to $9.42, while Celestica Inc. rose 81¢ to close at $17.35.

Gold was the weakest Toronto sector, down 1% even as the price of bullion was up US20¢ to US$348.30 an ounce. Kinross fell 65¢ to $8.85 after a disappointing first quarter. It lost US$13.3 million US while revenue rose 74% thanks to higher gold prices and its takeover of TVX and Echo Bay.

In other earnings news, St. Lawrence Cement widened its loss to $13.7 million on dropping sales in its seasonally weak first quarter. Its shares added 11¢ to $20.90.

La Senza drooped 40¢ at $9.25 after the lingerie retailer reported a quarterly loss, partly on the anticipated divestiture of the Suzy Shier apparel chain.

Among active stocks, Air Canada fell 8¢ at $1.66, Bombardier gained 4¢ at $3.78, and CIBC shed 60¢ to $46.25.

The TSX Venture Exchange rose 1.17 points to 1,065.35.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average finished up 113.38 points, at 8,604.60. The S&P 500 added 13.14 points to 933.41. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index rallied 30.46 points to 1,520.15.

For the week, the S&P 500 gained 0.36%, the Dow added 0.25% and Nasdaq advanced 1.15%.

The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index closed up 0.90 at 1065.08. Trading was heavy on a volume of 38.1 million shares worth $17.2 million, with 221 advances, 187 declines and 507 issues
unchanged.

The Canadian dollar kept the strong gains of the week intact Friday despite a hike in the April unemployment rate. The loonie finished at US71.80¢, down slightly from Thursday’s close of US71.85¢.

Statistics Canada reported an April jobless rate of 7.5%, up one-fifth of a percentage point from March as 19,000 jobs disappeared.