Australia

Australian shares are set to rise at the open on Monday, following major US indices posting their fourth consecutive week of gains. That marked their longest stretch since a streak that ended in early November, when both rose for five weeks in a row.

ASX futures were up 39 points or 0.56% at 6973 as of 7:00am on Monday, pointing to a rise at the open.

US stocks rose Friday, with major indexes notching gains for the week as investors cheered signs of a slowdown in inflation.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite both posted their fourth consecutive week of gains. That marked their longest stretch since a streak that ended in early November, when both rose for five weeks in a row.

Investors hope a recent deceleration in consumer-price growth will encourage the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates at a slower pace, which in turn could prevent the economy from tipping into a recession. Lower rates tend to boost prices for stocks, bonds and more speculative assets like cryptocurrencies, and stocks have swooned this year in part because of the Fed's aggressive rate increases.

Though inflation is still near the highest it has been in decades, data Wednesday showed that it had eased, clocking in at 8.5% in July compared with 9.1% in June. Data on Thursday showed that U.S. suppliers raised prices in July at the slowest annual pace since last fall, buoyed by a drop in energy prices.

On Friday, the S&P 500 climbed 72.88 points, or 1.7%, to 4280.15. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 267.27 points, or 2.1%, to 13047.19.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 424.38 points, or 1.3%, to 33761.05.

The Dow rose 2.9% for the week. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 were up more than 3% for the week.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil slipped 2.4% to $US92.09 a barrel, gold was up 0.7% to US$ 1,802.40. Crude-oil prices are down 26% from a March high of $123.70.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds rose to 2.84% while the 10 Year rose to 3.42%. Overseas, the yield on 2 Year US Treasury notes edged up to 3.25% and the yield on the 10 Year US Treasury notes was down at 2.84%.

The Australian dollar hit 71.23 US cents, flat from the previous close. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies edged up to 97.34.

Asia

Chinese shares ended lower, reversing from the gains made in the previous session as electronics and auto makers slid, offsetting advances from airlines. Some individual stock moves were driven by earnings. Will Semiconductor slid 5.9% after first-half operating revenue fell 11% on year, while China Mobile added 3.0% after its first-half profit rose 19%. Air China climbed 5.7% after saying that it will resume some international flights, while China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines added 2.6% and 1.9%, respectively. The Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.1% to 3276.89, paring its weekly increase to 1.5%. The Shenzhen Composite Index lost 0.4% and the ChiNext Price Index was 1.1% lower.

The Nikkei Stock Average ended 2.6% higher at 28546.98, rising in line with many regional markets as concerns over U.S. inflation and the Fed's aggressive tightening eased somewhat. Precision stocks led the gains, with Terumo advancing 4.0%, Olympus surging 5.3% and Hoya gaining 3.6%. SoftBank Group ended 5.6% higher after news that it will reduce its stake in Alibaba Group, which would help the tech-investment company preserve cash. Rakuten Group rose 7.9% after reporting 1H earnings, while Mitsui & Co. gained 3.0% after saying it will sell its 20% stake in an Australian coking-coal business for $380 million.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended 0.5% higher at 20175.62, ahead of the release of revised 2Q GDP data. Energy stocks led gains, supported by improved sentiment after the International Energy Agency raised its forecast for global oil-demand growth amid Europe's summer heat waves. Cnooc rose 2.5%, China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. added 1.9% and PetroChina was 1.1% higher. Air China jumped 4.3% after it announced the resumption of international flights. Jinmao Property Services rose 2.8% after saying that it expects 1H net profit to rise more than 90%.

Europe

The pan-European STOXX Europe 600 Index ended up 5.15 points or 1.18% last week to 440.87. The German DAX ended the week up 221.92 points or 1.63%, while the French CAC 40 Index is up 81.51 points or 1.26%.

In London, the FTSE 100 closed up 0.5% on Friday as the Volatility Index and oil prices fell.

"The week is rounding out with further upside for equities, as the general positive feeling in the wake of this week's inflation data continues. We are now firmly into the quiet period of August, and while there is plenty of U.K. economic data next week major earnings are thin on the ground," Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.

Flutter Entertainment was the biggest riser, ending up 14% after reporting its results for the first half, followed by Mondi, which ended 11% higher after saying it is selling its Russian facility for about $1.57 billion in cash.

North America

The July inflation data were the first all year not to disappoint the markets, said Oanda analyst Craig Erlam. That plus good earnings reports and hopeful jobs numbers have combined to give equities a burst this summer, he said, despite lingering questions about monetary policy and a possible recession.

"Investors are eternal optimists and will focus on the good and ignore the bad," he said.

Consumers appear to be on the same wavelength as investors. The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer-sentiment index rose to 55.1 in August, up from 51.5 in July. A final reading will be released later this month.

Economists at Bank of America Global Research said in a note that the inflation data make it likely that the Fed will raise its main interest rate by half a percentage point in September, after two consecutive three-quarter-point increases.

Samy Chaar, chief economist at Lombard Odier, said several factors point to slowing inflation, including a fall in shipping rates and decline in global commodity prices. Another risk that had weighed on stocks -- the downturn in China's economy -- also seems to be improving, Mr. Chaar said.

"The big question here is: Is it morphing into a more fundamental kind of rally?" he said, after the initial pickup in stocks was driven by a rebound from depressed levels.

Mr. Chaar said the risk is that the tight U.S. labor market stops inflation falling below about 3%, which would maintain pressure on the Fed to raise rates higher than many traders expect.

Still, equity markets are down sharply for the year because of the Fed, and many money managers caution it is too soon to say the central bank will ease up in its campaign to quell inflation. Wild cards remain, such as the energy crisis unfolding in Europe, which could boost energy prices globally.

There doesn't appear to be anything major looming for investors between now and the Federal Reserve's annual conference in Wyoming later this month, Mr. Erlam said. "You may see this turn into a slow burn between now and Jackson Hole," he said.

In corporate equities, shares of Peleton Interactive rose 14%, or $1.62, to $13.53 after the company said it plans to cut costs and raise prices.

Toast, which provides a digital technology platform for restaurants, jumped 8.2%, or $1.49, to $19.64 after it boosted its revenue and earnings outlook for the year.

Shares of property-management technology company SmartRent fell 32%, or $1.79, to $3.82 after it reported a wider loss for its latest quarter.

Poshmark shares dropped 8.4%, or $1.08, to $11.80 after its revenue guidance fell short of analysts' expectations.