In a major speech at the University of Massachusetts on Thursday, Yellen laid out a detailed argument for raising short-term interest rates by the end of the year.

Yellen noted that the Federal Open Market Committee will continue to monitor closely economic conditions and market responses to the Fed’s actions.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index climbed 14 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,946 as of 11:04 a.m. Eastern.

Stocks on Wall Street jumped following an nearly 3-percent surge in Europe, after a report showed the US economy grew more than previously estimated in the second quarter, propelled by consumer spending and construction – the second upward revision in a row.

USA gross domestic product rose at a 3.9 percent annual pace between April and June, faster than the 3.7 percent pace reported last month.

Traders had expected the Fed Chair’s speech to clarify the central bank’s stance on future rate hikes, after last week’s FOMC meeting had induced global volatility in markets and sparked worries about weakness in the world’s largest economy. He expects economic growth to average about 2.5 percent next year, allowing the Fed to raise interest rates gradually.

In other sectors, Industrials advanced 1.66 percent when Bombardier, Canada’s biggest aircraft and railway maker spiked 8.9 percent to 1.59 Canadian dollars per share.

The dollar index .dxy rose to 96.252, turning around from a slide to 95.458. Volkswagen will reportedly bring in the head of its Porsche auto brand as new chief executive, as it fights the fallout from the United States vehicle emissions test scandal.

The markets plural seems to have been inspired by Yellen’s speech yesterday whereby she made it quite clear that the Fed still intends to hike by year end and that such represents her desire as well as almost everyone else’s on the Board.

The two-year yield, which rises with expectations of higher US rates, hit a one-week high of 0.7430 percent before retreating to 0.700 percent, up 2 basis points on the day.

The mining sector was still in the red by 1.35 percent when Teck Resources Ltd. plummeted 4.26 percent to 6.52 Canadian dollars a share.

ENERGY: Benchmark US crude rose 79 cents to close at $45.70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note (US10Y) sat higher on Friday, at around 2.162 percent, after closing at 2.12 percent on Thursday.