Wall Street's main indexes closed higher on Thursday, with the Nasdaq rising more than 2 percent after July US retail sales data signaled resilient consumer spending, allaying fears of an imminent recession in the world's largest economy.

Retail sales increased 1.0 percent after a downwardly revised 0.2 percent drop in June, easing fears of a sharp economic slowdown fanned by a jump in the unemployment rate last week.

Retail bellwether Walmart rose 6.58 percent after raising its annual profit forecast for the second time this year as Americans flocked to its stores for inexpensive essentials. Rivals Target and Costco also advanced 4.35 percent and 1.69 percent, respectively.

A separate reading also showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell unexpectedly last week.

"The wall of worry is beginning to crumble as sentiment is improving and the fundamentals support a risk-on bias," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at US Bank Wealth Management. "Retail sales were above expectations, Consumer Price Index numbers came in at a tolerable level, so the fundamental backdrop is consistent with rising equity prices."

Investors have cautiously eyed this week's economic data releases, the last set before Fed Chairman Jerome Powell delivers a much-awaited speech at Jackson Hole next week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.39 percent, to 40,563. The S&P 500 gained 1.61 percent, at 5,543. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.34 percent, to 17,595.

Among other movers, Cisco Systems rose 6.8 percent after it forecast better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and said it was cutting 7 percent of its global workforce.

Nike climbed 5.07 percent as billionaire investor William Ackman built new stakes in the sportswear company. Ulta Beauty jumped 11.17 percent after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway acquired a stake in the cosmetics store chain. (Reuters)