US markets back on positive track

Stocks headed into positive territory in New York Friday following losses in Asia and Europe. Investors are focused on Greece, where members of Parliament will vote Sunday on an austerity budget that could make or break the international community's willingness to continue with bailout loans. In Washington, the Department of Labor Statistics said import prices rose 0.5 percent in October after economists had predicted they would remain unchanged. In early afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average, after opening lower, added 48.80 points or 0.38 percent to 12,860.12. The Nasdaq composite index gained 26.56 points or 0.92 percent to 2,922.14. The Standard and Poor's 500 index added 10.17 points or 0.74 percent to 1,387.68. The benchmark 10-year treasury fell 4/32 to yield 1.632 percent. The euro fell to $1.2721 from Thursday's $1.2747. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 79.47 yen from 79.48 yen. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.9 percent, 79.55 points, to 8,757.60. In London, the FTSE 100 index lost 0.11 percent, 6.37, to 5,769.68.