Gold and silver prices are moderately up in early U.S. trading Friday, on corrective bounces after selling off sharply on Thursday. A sell off in the U.S. dollar index today is also benefiting the precious metals markets. June gold futures were last up $3.60 an ounce at $1,297.00. May Comex silver was last up $0.153 at $15.02 an ounce. Asian and European stock indexes were mixed to weaker overnight. U.S. stock indexes are pointed toward higher openings when the New York day session begins. Investor/trader risk appetite remains keener late this week, bolstered by news of a mega merger between oil companies Chevron and Anadarko. The U.S. corporate earnings season gets underway today, with big-bank results released, including JP Morgan and Wells Fargo. Several bank industry analysts were expecting somewhat downbeat earnings reports for the first quarter of this year. However, the just-released JP Morgan and Wells Fargo results beat market expectations. In overnight news, China reported its import and export activity for March. Exports were up 14.2%, year-on-year, while imports were down 7.6% in the same period. These latest figures are deemed upbeat for China’s economy, given that in February its exports declined 20.7% from a year ago. Forecasters had expected a rise in China’s exports of around 9% in March. The key outside markets today find the U.S. dollar index lower. Meantime, Nymex crude oil prices are higher and trading around $64.50 a barrel. U.S. economic reports due for release include import and export prices, and the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey. Also, the IMF and World Bank spring meetings get under way.