The U.S. stocks extend rally on Thursday amid latest economic reports showing more recovery signs.
The National Association of Realtors said that pending home sales registered a record-high rise of 10.4 percent in October, indicating the picking-up of the most-battered housing market.
U.S. retailers reported a robust November. Data showed that same-store sales rose by an average of 6 percent last month, one of the biggest increases in three years.
A separate report from the Labor Department showed the number of people filing for unemployment benefits rose 26,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 436,000. But the four-week moving average, which aims to smooth out fluctuation in the data, edged down to a fresh two-year low.
In Europe, the European Central Bank abandoned its plans to wind down emergency support for banks and government debt markets, responding to concerns that an early exit from such programs could jeopardize the euro. This also supported the market's climb.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 106.63, or 0.95 percent, to 11,362.41. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 15.45 points, or 1.28 percent, to 1,221.52 and the Nasdaq was up 29.92 points, or 1.17 percent, to 2,579.35.
