Australia

Australian shares are set to open higher, as Wall Street responds positively to Nvidia earnings.

ASX futures were up 0.4% or 32 points as of 8:30am on Friday, suggesting a higher open.

Nvidia's higher-than-expected earnings and bullish guidance lifted U.S. stocks, driving main indexes to new highs.

DJIA rose 1.2% to 39069 and the S&P 500 gained 2.1% to 5087, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 3% to 16042.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil rose 0.6% to US$83.52 a barrel, while gold was down 0.1% at US$2,024.77.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was up at 3.82% while the 10 Year yield was down at 4.15%. US Treasury notes were mixed, with the 2 Year yield up at 4.71% and the 10 Year yield unchanged at 4.32%.

The Australian dollar hit 65.53 US cents down from its previous close of 65.49. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was down at 98.45.

Asia

Chinese shares closed higher, led by energy and brokerage stocks. Sentiment seemed to get a boost from a news report saying regulators have banned major institutional investors from selling equity holdings at the start and end of trading sessions. This could be seen as underlining Beijing's determination to stabilize ailing markets, analysts say. In energy, Shanxi Coking Coal and China Coal Energy rose 8.8% and 5.25%, respectively. Brokerages Everbright Securities and Cinda Securities added a respective 6% and 2.3%. Chipmaker Cambricon surged 9.9% as strong Nvidia earnings boosted chip stocks. Property names fell, with Poly Developments down 1% and China Vanke losing 0.6%. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.3% to 2988.36. The Shenzhen Composite Index added 1.3% and the ChiNext Price Index gained 0.3%.

Hong Kong shares ended higher for a third consecutive day, supported by earnings beats, higher oil prices and positive sentiment from Beijing's efforts to restore investor confidence. Trip.com added 7.3% after strong earnings, while Lenovo gained 3.3% after it reported a revenue rise for the first time since 2022. Energy majors gained, supported by high demand and tensions in the Middle East, with PetroChina adding 5.7%, CNOOC rising 5.85% and China Petroleum & Chemical gaining 3.45%. HSBC dropped 1.1%, taking two-day losses to 4.9% after it reported mixed earnings. The Hang Seng Index closed 1.45% higher at 16742.95, taking this week gain to 2.47%.

The Nikkei Stock Average ended 2.2% higher at 39098.68, a fresh high above the previous record closing of 38915.87 set in December 1989. Chip-related stocks led the day's gains following Nvidia's strong quarterly results. Tokyo Electron Ltd. gained 6.0%, SoftBank Group, the parent of British chip designer Arm, climbed 5.1% and Advantest rose 7.5%. Investors were focusing on economic data and their implications for the Bank of Japan's monetary easing policy. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield fell half a basis point to 0.715%.

Indian shares closed lower, tracking gains in other Asian markets and U.S. stock futures after Nvidia's quarterly results exceeded analysts' expectations and upbeat forecasts. Tech stocks led gainers on the local bourse. HCL Technologies rose 3.1% and Tata Consultancy Services was 2.4% higher. Auto stocks moved up as well, with Bajaj Auto gaining 3.4% and Mahindra & Mahindra up 2.6%. Bank shares were the biggest laggards on the benchmark index, with HDFC Bank dropping 1.3% and IndusInd Bank down 1.9%. The benchmark Sensex ended 0.7% higher at 73158.24.

Europe

The Stoxx Europe 600 ended up 0.8% at a record high closing level of 495.10—having earlier hit an intraday record of 496.30—as equity markets across the globe were boosted by AI giant Nvidia's bumper earnings released late on Wednesday. Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 also hit record highs. Risk-on sentiment is back on the cards after stellar Nvidia earnings, IG senior market analyst Axel Rudolph says in a note. PMI data earlier suggested the eurozone's economic downturn could be easing, though Germany's manufacturing activity weakened, he says. The DAX ended up 1.5% and the CAC 40 up 1.3%.

The FTSE 100 closed Thursday up 0.3% though it lagged peers, after Nvidia's earnings report boosted global risk appetite and sent stock markets surging around the globe. The boost to Nvidia's share price after another monster earnings report and super forecast has led to a collective relief rally across markets, says Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB in a note. The FTSE 100 did rise but lagged other global indices—largely because it of its comparably smaller tech sector—Brooks says. Tech accounts for just over 1% of the index's market, and today wasn't the day for energy or financial firms to shine, Brooks says.

North America

Nvidia's higher-than-expected earnings and bullish guidance lifted U.S. stocks, driving main indexes to new highs.

DJIA rose 1.2% to 39069 and the S&P 500 gained 2.1% to 5087, both setting new records. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 3% to 16042, close to its all-time high set in 2021.

The chip maker, whose products are in high demand by the booming AI sector, gained 16%. Other tech companies rode the wave, with AMD rising 14%. Meanwhile, drug maker Moderna rose 11% on better-than-expected results.