NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks racked up solid gains on Friday, putting investors and traders in a positive mood ahead of the long weekend.

U.S. markets will be closed on Monday for Martin Luther King Jnr. Day.

Anticipation of a resolution from trade talks between China and the United States dominated trading, with most pundits, and reports talking up the idea. Stocks around the world rallied on the prospect.

All the major U.S. indices gained for the fourth week in a row.

"It's risk-on again. We've gotten an olive branch from China regarding trade. Obviously there's been a very positive reaction from the market," Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York told Reutyers Thomson Friday.

At the close of trading Friday the Dow Jones Industrial Average had rallied 336.25 points or 1.38% to 24,706.35.

The Standard and Poor's 500 added 34.75 points or 1.32% to 2,670.71.

The Nasdaq Composite climbed 72.77 points or 1.03% to 7,157.23.

The U.S. dollar remained in demand on forex markets. Around the New York close Friday the euro had been nudged down to 1.1364. The British pound was in demand at 1.2865, while the Swiss franc was little changed at 0.9957.

The Japanese yen remained out of favour, last quoted at 109.74.

The Canadian dollar was unchanged at 1.3275. The Australian and New Zealand dollars however slipped to 0.7168 and 0.6741 respectively.

Overseas, shares in Europe enjoyed a very strong rally to finish the week. At the close of trading Friday, London's FTSE 100 was up 1.95%. The German Dax gained 2.63%, while the Paris-based CAC 40 added 1.70%.

Stocks in Asia also made strong gains.

By the close of trading Friday, the Australian All Ordinaries had gained 34.40 points or 0.58% to 5,944.20.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was ahead 263.80 points or 1.29% at 20,666.07.

The Shanghai Composite closed up 36.37 points or 1.42% at 2,596.01.

The Hang Seng in Hong Kong, at the close of trading Friday was up 335.18 points or 1.25% at 27,090.81.