Australia

Australian shares are set to open higher, after US stocks staged a broad-based rally on Thursday.

ASX futures were up 0.98% or 77 points as of 8:00am on Friday, suggesting a higher open.

U.S. stock indexes rallied after fresh data showed that retail spending grew last month, assuaging some investor fears about an economic slowdown.

The S&P 500 climbed 1.6% Thursday, rising for a sixth consecutive session. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 2.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4%, or about 550 points.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was up 1.4% to US$80.89 a barrel, while gold was flat at US$2,456.66.

The Australian dollar was at 66.10.94 US cents, up from its previous close of 65.96.

Asia

Chinese shares ended higher, supported by insurance and property stocks, after a string of economic data offered investors a mixed picture of the economy. The country's retail sales improved last month, while fixed-asset investment growth slowed unexpectedly in the January-July period. Meanwhile, authorities said they would buy up excessive apartments and digest housing inventories further. Insurance and property stocks led gains, with China Life Insurance climbing 2.6%, Ping An Insurance rising 2.05% and China Vanke adding 1.9%. Among the top decliners, Huaqin Technology dropped 3.2% and Shennan Circuit was down 2.15%. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closed 0.9% higher at 2,877.36. The Shenzhen Composite Index rose 0.8% and the ChiNext Price Index gained 0.5%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed flat at 17,109.14 amid mixed regional trading. The markets may be awaiting key U.S. data releases later in the day, including July retail sales and weekly jobless claims, for more clues about the direction of the economy. Among decliners, Zhongsheng Group fell 4.5%, Alibaba Health Information Technology lost 3.7% and Li Ning was 3.65% lower. Meanwhile, Sino Biopharmaceutical gained 5.6%, NetEase rose 3.9% and China Shenhua Energy was 3.4% higher. The Hang Seng Tech Index ended 0.3% lower.

Japanese shares ended higher, led by gains in auto and financial stocks, after stronger-than-expected GDP data eased concerns about the economic outlook. Subaru Corp. advanced 5.2% and Mizuho Financial Group climbed 4.0%. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.8% to 36,726.64. Investors are focusing on U.S. economic data and their policy implications. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield rose 2.5 basis points to 0.830%.

Indian shares ended higher, led by tech stocks. HCL Technologies was 2.1% higher, Infosys added 1.4% and Tech Mahindra gained 1.4%. Steel stocks spearheaded the declines, with Tata Steel dropping 1.8% and JSW Steel 1.9% lower. Investors are focusing on India trade data to get more clues on the strength of the economy. The benchmark Sensex index ended 0.2% higher at 79,105.88.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. rose Thursday, as the FTSE 100 Index gained 0.8% to 8347.35.

Among large companies, Admiral Group PLC was the biggest gainer during the session, surging 6.5%, and Alphawave IP Group PLC surged 5.2%. Watches of Switzerland Group PLC rounded out the top three movers on Thursday, as shares gained 4.6%.

OSB Group PLC posted the largest decline, dropping 19%, followed by shares of Deliveroo PLC, which fell 2.8%. Shares of Pennon Group PLC fell 1.8%.

In other parts of Europe markets closed higher, with the STOXX Europe 600 Index up 1.2% at 509.88, Germany's DAX rose 1.7% to 18,183.24 and France's CAC 40 added 1.2% to 7,423.37.

North America

U.S. stock indexes rallied after fresh data showed that retail spending grew last month, assuaging some investor fears about an economic slowdown.

The S&P 500 climbed 1.6% Thursday, rising for a sixth consecutive session. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 2.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4%, or about 550 points.

A trio of fresh data points reassured investors that consumer spending, the backbone of the U.S. economy, is holding up.

Retail sales -- a measure of spending at stores, online and in restaurants -- rose a seasonally adjusted 1% in July from the month before, higher than economists expected. Weekly jobless claims came in slightly below consensus forecasts, and Walmart reported strong sales for its latest quarter, with executives saying they don't see signs of fraying demand. The retailer's shares rose 6.6%.

"The data we've seen over the past 24 hours couldn't get any better," said Gina Bolvin, president of Bolvin Wealth Management Group. "We're not in a recession, and economic growth is going to continue."

Investors have worried that the economy would slow after data showed job growth slowed sharply in July and U.S. retail giants, such as Home Depot, McDonald's and Disney, sounded warnings about flagging consumer spending.

The data released Thursday strengthened expectations for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates by a quarter-percentage point at its September meeting. Traders in interest-rate futures were placing a 77% chance of a quarter-point cut next month, up from 64% Wednesday, according to CME data. Bets for a bigger half-point cut, which some investors thought might be needed to cushion the economy, fell.

Wall Street's "fear gauge," the Cboe Volatility Index, fell to 15.23, its lowest close since late July.

Among individual stocks, shares of Ulta Beauty jumped 11.2%, the best performer in the S&P 500. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed its stake in the beauty company after market closed Wednesday.

Cisco Systems shares climbed 6.8%, after the networking-equipment company said it plans to cut its workforce by 7%, or about 6,000 people.