U.S. stocks followed major markets in Asia and Europe higher Friday as Apple Inc. (NYSE:AAPL) shares gained on overwhelming demand for its new iPhone 5 and Spain's government appeared to make progress on financial reform.

The S&P 500 rose 3.32 to 1,463.58, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 24.58 to 13,621.51, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 12.34 to 3,188.30. The main stock indexes in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore were up by similar amounts, and in Europe the dominant equity indexes in Paris and Frankfurt posted gains, too.

Global sales of the new iPhone 5 by Apple Inc. (NYSE:AAPL) soared, lifting shares of the Cupertino, Calif., company and adding upward pressure to the U.S. stock market.

Meanwhile, Spain's government is reportedly considering freezing pensions and accelerating the timetable for raising the retirement age, Reuters said.

Apple inc. Ios Iphone 6 Iphone