US equity indexes closed higher on Friday, bolstered by a surge in Amazon.com's (AMZN) shares following strong quarterly earnings.

* Amazon's stock jumped 9.6%, the biggest gain on the Nasdaq and the Dow, a day after Q3 results topped estimates by analysts. Morgan Stanley said the company's cloud computing division is positioned for faster growth.

* The Institute for Supply Management's Chicago Purchasing Managers Index rose to 43.8 in October from 40.6 in September and above the 42.0 reading expected in a Bloomberg survey, signaling a modest improvement in business activity despite remaining below the 50 threshold that separates expansion from contraction.

* December West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $0.32 to settle at $60.89 per barrel, while December Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $0.07 to $65.07.

* First Solar (FSLR) shares surged 14%, the biggest gain on the S&P 500, a day after the company posted higher Q3 earnings and revenue.

* DexCom (DXCM) shares dropped 15% after several analysts cut their price targets following the company's Q3 results late Thursday.