U.S. stock indexes advanced modestly in midday trading Friday, a day after markets plunged.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up two-tenths of one percent, while the S&P 500 is ahead seven-tenths of a percent. The NASDAQ is up one percent.

European stock markets also closed higher.

London's Financial Times 100 index climbed one-half of one percent to close at 5,067. The CAC-40 in Paris ended up one percent to close at 2,810. The DAX in Frankfurt advanced six-tenths of a percent to close at 5,197.

In Asia, Japanese markets were closed Friday for a national holiday.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 1.4 percent to end at 17,669.

Gold is trading down $73.93 at $1,666.46 an ounce.  

The U.S. dollar is falling against the euro, but up against the yen.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP, Bloomberg and Reuters.