Japan's new stimulus plan sends global stock markets higher; US indexes near record highs

Stocks markets are rising around the globe after Japan's central bank surprised investors with a new round of economic stimulus.

The gains put major U.S. indexes back to the record high levels they were at just six weeks ago, erasing a mid-October swoon that brought the market down nearly 10 percent.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 20 points, or 1 percent, to 2,015 as of 11:50 a.m. Eastern time Friday.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 177 points, or 1 percent, to 17,372. The Nasdaq rose 58 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,624.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei index soared 5 percent to the highest level since 2007.

In the U.S., GoPro jumped 13 percent after the maker of wearable video cameras posted profit and revenue that beat analysts' projections.