NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising in midday trading as investors anticipate action by central banks to head off a deeper European debt crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 68 points to 12,720 shortly before noon Friday. Microsoft was the Dow's leading stock, rising 2 percent, following reports that the company is in talks to buy Yammer, a developer of social networks within companies.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose seven points to 1,336. The Nasdaq composite rose 15 to 2,851.
All eyes are on Greece, where an election on Sunday could determine whether the country stays within the euro currency union. The European Central Bank president said the bank would continue its "crucial role" of making sure the financial system has enough cash.
