Wall Street rose, and Canada's main stock index hit its highest close in a year on Friday, notching a fourth straight weekly gain as yield-producing telecom and utility stocks found favor, offsetting a plunge in shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc VRX.TO.

Valeant fell 6.2 per cent to $30.03 after U.S. regulators raised concerns about a new eye drop the company manufactures.

Telecoms climbed 1.3 per cent, with Rogers Communications Inc RCIb.TO extending post-earnings gains with a 2.1 per cent advance to $56.81.

Its rivals, which have not yet reported second-quarter numbers, also gained, with Telus Corp T.TO adding 1.6 per cent to $43.96 and BCE Inc BCE.TO up 0.6 per cent to $63.15.

The utilities sector rose 0.7 per cent.

Both sectors feature many stocks that pay dividends, making them attractive to investors searching for yield.

"Even though the index is up, it seems like there is some defensive positioning going on," said Youssef Zohny, portfolio manager at StennerZohny Investment Partners+ in Vancouver. "We're taking a more protective stance to hang onto gains," he added.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index .GSPTSE settled up 34.83 points, or 0.24 percent, at 14,600.66. That was its highest close since July 17, 2015.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rose 53.62 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 18,570.85, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 9.86 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 2,175.03 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 26.26 points, or 0.52 per cent, to 5,100.16.

The S&P 500 is up more than 6 per cent in 2016, shaking off a rough start to the year and global instability, including Britain's recent vote to leave the European Union.

Eight of the index's 10 main groups finished in positive territory, with four advancers per three decliners.

Celestica Inc CLS.TO, a contract electronics manufacturer, jumped 8.5 per cent to $14.28 after reporting earnings after the bell on Thursday.

Husky Energy Inc HSE.TO rose 3.1 per cent to $15.89 as after Canada's No. 3 integrated oil company rushed to clean up an oil spill after earlier in the day reporting a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss on lower production costs.

The overall energy group rose 0.6 per cent despite a fall in crude oil prices CLc1 LCOc1 as glut fears grow.

Thursday saw the kickoff of oil and gas earnings season with Encana Corp ECA.TO and Precision Drilling Corp PD.TO planning to boost activity.