US stocks grow on strong retail sales data, semiconductors lead

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US stocks surged on Thursday as upbeat consumer and labour data fuelled a rally, easing recession fears and bolstering investor confidence.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 554 points, or 1.39 per cent, to close at 40,563.06. The S&P 500 climbed 1.61 per cent to 5,543.22, marking its sixth consecutive day of gains. The broader index has rebounded approximately 8 per cent from its intraday low on August 5. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.34 per cent to finish at 17,594.50.

Turning to US sectors, all sectors closed higher overnight except for Utilites and Real Estate. Consumer Discretionary was the best performer, closing higher by 3.38 per cent. Technology rallied 2.5 per cent.

Walmart contributed to the market's upward momentum, with shares rising 7 per cent after the company raised its outlook and delivered better-than-expected earnings. Cisco Systems also added to the rally, jumping 7 per cent following a strong fiscal fourth-quarter performance and job cuts.

Semiconductor stocks outperformed the broader market on Thursday. Semiconductor ETFs, including SOXX and XSD, surged by 4.8 per cent and 5.4 per cent respectively. Industry leader Nvidia surged 4 per cent, whilst Broadcom and Monolithic Power Systems grew 5.4 per cent and 6.7 per cent respectively.

Retail sales surged 1 per cent in July, significantly exceeding the Dow Jones forecast of a 0.3 per cent increase. Additionally, weekly jobless claims declined. These positive economic indicators helped the market recover from a recent downturn sparked by concerns over a potential recession, which intensified after the disappointing July jobs report.

Turning to commodities, gold prices fluctuated as strong US economic data raised concerns about potential Fed rate cut reductions, offsetting optimism for monetary easing. Despite this, gold increased in value, driven by central bank purchases, geopolitical tensions, and its status as a safe-haven asset.  

Futures

The SPI futures are pointing to a 1 per cent gain.

Currency

One Australian dollar at 7.35am was buying 66.13 US cents.

Commodities

Gold has added 0.51 per cent. Silver has jumped 3.95 per cent. Copper has gained 2.52 per cent. Oil has risen 1.53 per cent.

Figures around the globe

European markets closed higher. London’s FTSE added 0.80 per cent, Frankfurt gained 1.66 per cent, and Paris closed 1.23 per cent higher.

Turning to Asian markets, Tokyo’s Nikkei added 0.78 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.02 per cent, while China’s Shanghai Composite closed 0.94 per cent higher.

Yesterday, the Australian share market closed 0.19 per cent higher at 7865.52.  

Ex-dividends
Argo Investments (ASX:ARG) is paying 18 cents fully franked

Dividends payable
Centuria Office REIT (ASX:COF)
Cromwell Property Group (ASX:CMW)
QANTM Intellectual Property Ltd (ASX:QIP)

Sources: Bloomberg, FactSet, IRESS, TradingView, UBS, Bourse Data, Trading Economics, CoinMarketCap, Marketech.