US stocks registered gains for the day and week on low trading volumes that took both the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite to record finishes, before an early close Friday after the Thursday Thanksgiving holiday.

"As we inch closer to that ultimate health solution ... we're starting to see market participation broaden out and rotate into some of the more impaired sectors through the course of this pandemic", said Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Wealth Management.

The S&P 500 also recorded a fresh closing high this week, while the Nasdaq has yet to surpass its recent November high. In the US, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 surpassed 90,000 for the first time, as the pandemic loomed over the holiday.

The major indexes have shown double-digit growth so far this month, with the S&P 500 posting a gain of 11.2%.

The S&P 500 is up 80.81 points, or 2.3%.

Although European bourses were subdued by doubts around the effectiveness of AstraZeneca's vaccine, Meckler said it would not affect the USA stock market with traders betting on candidates being developed by Pfizer Inc and Moderna Inc. But researchers have questioned how Oxford and AstraZeneca calculated the effectiveness of their vaccine. Adobe rose 2% and Intel each added 1.7%.

The vaccine news has offset concerns about spiking coronavirus cases in the USA and other parts of the world. USA states and European governments are re-imposing controls on business and travel as infection rates surge.

There is little in the way of macroeconomic news to keep USA traders occupied before they slope off to give the credit card a caning with some online shopping on Pavlov's Day - otherwise known as Black Friday.

Shares of TAL Education Group and Yum China Holdings slid 1 percent and 0.53 percent, respectively, leading the laggards in the top 10 stocks. Many retailers are beefing up their safety protocols, moving their doorbuster deals online and curbside pickup options as a last grasp at sales before the year ends.

Black Friday is off to a healthy start, with retail stocks gaining as investors wager for an energetic holiday shopping season.

Tech shares have led the market's climb back from its plunge in March as investors bet giants such as Apple and Microsoft will keep raking in the profits whether Americans are forced to stay home or the economy begins to return to something resembling normalcy.

European markets rose. Germany's DAX gained 0.4% and the CAC 40 in France rose 0.6%.

Trading Friday also comes amid the persistent rise in COVID-19 cases, despite progress on remedies. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong gained 0.8%.

Prices for the 10-Year Treasury climbed sharply, lowering yields to 0.84% from Wednesday's 0.89%.