Basic materials lead stock market recovery; financials still lag

Commodities stocks continue to be the best performing in Thursday's U.S. stock market while financials, especially European banks, still lag.

European assets also lag those of emerging markets.

The Dow Jones U.S. Basic Materials Index is up 2.22 percent while the Dow Jones U.S. Financials Index is only up 0.18 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading at 10,147.21 around 3:20 p.m., up 105.88 points, or 1.05 percent. The S&P 500 Index is up 0.94 percent and the Nasdaq Composite leads with a gain of 1.37 percent.

European leaders today pledged support for Greece but did not divulge a specific plan. Continental European bank shares closed lower at the end of the Europe session.

Continental European banks traded in the U.S. are down. Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) American Depositary Receipts are down 0.74 percent while ADRs of France's BNP Paribas (OTC:BNPQY) are down 2.34 percent. Shares of Germany's Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) fell 1.79 percent.

France and Germany are expected to carry most of the burden for the Greece bailout. And should Greece default, the banks of the two countries are among the most exposed, according to a BNP Paribas analyst research.

National Bank of Greece (NYSE:NBG) ADRs are down 2.44 percent and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) shares, the worst performing among big U.S. banks, fell 1.99 percent. U.K.'s Barclays (NYSE:BCS) ADRs are also down 1.84 percent.

While financials lagged today, commodities prices gained and firms involved in commodities soared. Except for aluminum, commodities are mostly up, with oil trading above $75.

ADRs of U.K. oil firm BP (NYSE:BP) are up 2.17 percent and Southwestern Copper (NYSE:PCU) shares rose 5.49 percent.

All major indices closed up for the Asian session, with the Hang Seng Index closing up 1.85 percent. The European session that followed showed worse results; France and Germany closed down for the day while U.K. stocks rose.

Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) designed to track the stock market returns of foreign countries showed similar results. European ETFs lagged those of emerging markets. Nations rich in commodities also performed well.

The iShares MSCI Australia Index Fund (NYSE:EWA) gained 3.20 percent and iShares MSCI Brazil Index (NYSE:EWZ) gained 2.62 percent.

The iShares MSCI Germany Index Fund (NYSE:EWG) lost 0.45 percent and iShares MSCI Spain Index (NYSE:EWP) lost 1.04 percent.

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