Stocks on Wall Street opened higher shortly as investors became optimistic of Greece securing a bailout.
The country has boosted its negotiations with its creditors in a hope to unlock funds to make its payments to the International Monetary Fund later this month.
In the US, sales at retailers climbed 1.2% in May and rose for the third month in a row, offering more evidence of springtime rebound in consumer spending after a winter lull.
The data, despite being lower than expected, suggests the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in September as it has always promised to be data driven.
In equities, the Dow Jones climbed 72 points, or 0.4% to 18,069, while there were similar gains for the Nasdaq and the S&P 500.
Sports brand Nike led the risers on the Dow Jones after agreeing to replace rival Adidas as the official court uniform and apparel provider of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Shares rose 1.3% to US$104.
Meanwhile, Amazon.com rose despite the European Commission said it launched an anti-trust investigation into certain business practices by Amazon in the distribution of electronic books. Shares rose 1.2% to US$435.
Elsewhere, shares of Lululemon Athletica after the yoga-gear maker’s founder Dennis Wilson, filed papers to sell his entire 14.2% stake in the company. Shares eased 1.4% to US$ US$65.
In other earnings news, cloud storage company Box reported a loss after yesterday’s closing bell but it results were far better than had been expected. Shares jumped 11% to US$19 today.
Back in the UK, the FTSE 100 was 25 points higher to 6,856 led by supermarket chain Sainsbury’s following an upgrade by Cantor Fitzgerald.