Gains in the energy sector as the price of oil rose above US$80 a barrel helped Canada's main stock index surge more than 400 points higher on the first day of the fourth quarter, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index was up 436.97 points, or 2.37 per cent, at 18,881.19.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 765.38 points at 29,490.89. The S&P 500 index was up 92.81 points at 3,678.43, while the Nasdaq composite was up 239.82 points at 10,815.44.

The Canadian dollar traded for 73.20 cents U.S. compared with 72.96 cents US on Thursday.   

The November West Texas Intermediate crude contract was up US$4.14 at US$83.63 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down 30 cents at US$6.47 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$30 at US$1,702.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was largely unchanged at US$3.41 a pound.

- With files from BNN Bloomberg.