The New York Stock Exchange closed higher

At the close, the Dow Jones index rose 0.52 percent to 44,484.49 points.

The S&P 500 index rose 0.54 percent to 6,297.36 points and the Nasdaq index gained 0.74 percent to 20,884.27 points. Both indexes set closing records.

US retail sales rose 0.6 percent in June, exceeding expectations.

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits for the first time in the week ending July 12 decreased by 7,000 compared to the previous week, reaching 221,000.

The number of applications for unemployment benefits, which has decreased for five consecutive weeks and reached its lowest level in three months, was also below market expectations.

In the US, the import price index increased by 0.1 percent on a monthly basis in June, while the export price index increased by 0.5 percent.

Analysts said stronger-than-expected retail sales reassured U.S. consumer spending remained resilient, while declining jobless claims also signaled the labor market's continued strength.

Following the release of the data, US President Donald Trump posted on his social media account, saying, "Great numbers," and called on US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell, whom he described as "too late," to lower interest rates.

Analysts recalled that yesterday, there were reports in the national press that Trump would "fire" Powell, but Trump later said the reports were untrue.

Analysts pointed out that Trump's statement that he had no such plans eased concerns about the Fed's independence, and that Trump's dismissal of Powell would cause turmoil in the markets and lead to an increase in stock sales.

On the corporate side, PepsiCo's shares rose 7.5 percent after its earnings and revenue exceeded market expectations in its earnings report today.

While the statements of Fed officials are also being followed, Fed Board Member Adriana Kugler stated that inflation is running above the 2 percent target and is facing upward pressure from tariffs.

Kugler stated that he thinks inflation will rise further as the effects of tariffs increase for the rest of the year, saying, "I think it is appropriate to keep our policy rate at the current level for a while longer."

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly also said there was still work to be done on inflation, but they shouldn't wait until the inflation target is reached to cut interest rates.

Daly said he thought two interest rate cuts this year were reasonable.