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Stock futures rose Thursday as Wall Street took in signals that pointed to a still-strong US consumer and labor market. Futures tied to the S&P 500 ( ES=F ) were up 0.5%, while those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq ( NQ=F) rose 0.6%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures ( YM=F ) jumped 0.6%.

In focus early Thursday were earnings from retail giant Walmart ( WMT ), as well as monthly government retail sales data and an update on jobless claims. For its part, Walmart shares surged nearly 6% after a largely positive report in which it posted both earnings and revenue beats. The company also raised its full-year outlook.

Last month's retail sales, meanwhile, soared far past Wall Street's expectations in a sign that US consumers remain quite resilient. Retail sales rose 1% in July, above estimates for a 0.4% rise.

Also in focus is the normally routine update on weekly jobless claims. Last week, those claims fell more than forecast , sparking a market surge that has largely pervaded throughout this week. And they fell again this week to 227,000, shafting expectations for a pickup. As Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer writes, as inflation continues to ebb, the jobs market is "where the action is going to be" for the Fed in the near future.

After a brutal start to August, stocks have been on a tear, including in Wednesday's session after the Consumer Price Index posted its slowest year-over-year increase since early 2021. The S&P 500 has nearly recouped all of its losses from a sell-off that began at the start of the month.