US stocks rise on investor confidence in economic outlook, while Chinese property stocks dent Asian equities

US stocks rise on investor confidence in economic outlook, while Chinese property stocks dent Asian equities

US stocks rose on Thursday as investors concentrated on strong regional manufacturing activity that underpinned confidence in the broader economic outlook, while debt problems at China's second-biggest property developer weighed on Asian equities. Futures on the rose 0.6%, while those on the and rose 0.8% as of 5:10 a.m. ET, suggesting a higher start to trading later in the day. The NY Empire State Manufacturing Index, a gauge for business conditions for New York manufacturers, massively beat expectations in September, from 18.3 in August. Analysts expected a reading of 18. "That was enough to flush out the pent-up dip buyer demand out there with markets proclaiming the US recovery was back on track," Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst at OANDA, said. Investors chose to focus on this piece of data, rather than soft US industrial production figures overnight, which missed expetations. The S&P 500 rose by its most in nearly 3 weeks on Wednesday, rising 0.8%, as cyclical industries and tech stocks took the index back to within 1.3% of its all-time highs, Deutsche Bank strategists said. The Nasdaq closed 0.8%, finishing higher for the first time in six sessions. US weekly jobs data and monthly retail sales are