Financials led sector gains with a 1.6 per cent gain at the time of writing. Health care (+1.4 per cent) and materials (+1.0 per cent) outperformed.
Communication services and consumer staples were the laggard sectors, down 0.4 and 0.2 per cent, respectively.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals was the top single stock at the time of writing, climbing 19.1 per cent. The biotechnology company announced encouraging results from clinical trials for its eye disease medication jointly developed with Bayer.
Late-stage trials of the drug, Eylea, showed it could be safely administered at a higher dose with longer intervals between jabs.
Miner Freeport-McMoRan traded 7.5 per cent higher. Chemical manufacturer Albemarle Corporation gained 4.5 per cent.
McCormick & Company was down 6.1 per cent at the time of writing. The food business recently released its preliminary financials for the quarter to 31 August.
Sales are forecast to grow by roughly 3.0 per cent year-on-year, with forecast earnings of circa US$0.79 per share. The firm expects operating income of approximately US$223 million, trimmed from the US$265 million reported for the same period last year.
Fellow food firm Campbell Soup Company also slipped (-2.8 per cent).
Rounding out the underperformers was another food business, with Kraft Heinz trading 2.8 per cent lower.
The company recently affirmed its 2022 full year guidance, with adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Adjusted ebitda) expected between US$5.8 billion and US$6.0 billion for 2022.
Kraft Heinz noted the forecast now incorporates higher full year inflation of roughly 20 per cent.
Rest of the World
In Asia, the Nikkei gained 2.3 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng lowered 0.3 and 1.0 per cent, respectively.
Following the European Central Bank's decision to lift interest rates by 75 basis points, the Stoxx 600 improved 0.5 per cent.
Commodities
WTI Crude oil traded 2.3 per cent higher to US$83.84 per barrel2, at the time of writing.
Gold was down 0.4 per cent to US$1,720.50 an ounce.
Cryptocurrencies Bitcoin (+0.8 per cent) and Ethereum (+3.9 per cent) were in the green at the time of writing.
The US 10-Year Treasury Yield increased to 3.288 per cent (+0.023).
New Zealand
On Thursday, the NZX 50 closed higher for the first time this week, inclining 1.1 per cent.
KMD Brands led the rise, gaining 3.9 per cent.
Vital Healthcare Property Trust lifted 3.8 per cent.
Fisher and Paykel Healthcare had another day of gains, increasing 3.8 per cent to $19.88.
On the flip side, Vista Group fell 3.6 per cent.
NZX Limited declined 3.2 per cent and Sky TV dropped 2.9 per cent.
The CEO of Christchurch City Holdings has announced his departure, not long after resignations were received from the chair and a director. He will exit the company on 6 December due to differences of opinion with the board.
Australia
The ASX 200 bounced back from this week's weak performance, up 1.8 per cent by close. Information technology and health care were the strongest performers both gaining 1.8 per cent. Utilities was the largest detractor, closing 3.2 per cent lower.
Life360 also performed strongly, closing 16.4 per cent higher. The company released a presentation re-emphasising the company's plan to stop being a loss-maker.
Megaport rounds out the top three performances with a 12.6 per cent jump to A$8.33 a share.
Leading the laggards was Woodside Energy, down 5.5 per cent. Downwards movement on the oil price leaves the company in a less profitable position.
Alumina miner and producer Alumina Limited also closed in the red with a 2.5 per cent decline. Medibank Private Health Insurance also dropped 1.7 per cent over the day.
Australia's trade surplus plummeted A$8.94 billion to A$8.73 billion in August. In July, the country had reached a record trade surplus of A$17.67 billion but due to a 10.0 per cent drop in exports and a 5.0 per cent increase in imports, the trade surplus more than halved.
The Australian Government 10-year bond detracted 3.5 basis points to 3.612 per cent. Even with this downward movement, the yield is over 50 basis points higher than the start of Augusts rate of 3.067 per cent.
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