Wall Street also moved higher. In afternoon trading in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.39 per cent, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index increased 0.70 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 0.89 per cent.
Shares of Cisco led the advance in the Dow, soaring 9.3 per cent, after the company posted results that exceeded expectations.
"We delivered this strong performance despite a volatile economic environment," Cisco CEO John Chambers said in a statement.
Those gains outweighed a plunge in shares of American Express, last 6 per cent weaker. The company said its US co-brand and merchant acceptance agreements with Costco will end on March 31, 2016.
"Taking a very disciplined approach, we began discussions on a possible renewal with Costco well in advance of the contract expiration," Kenneth Chenault, CEO of American Express, said in a statement. "However, we were unable to reach terms that would have made economic sense for our company and shareholders."
Companies continue to find value. Shares of Expedia jumped, last up 16.7 per cent, after it agreed to acquire Orbitz Worldwide. Shares of Orbitz climbed 21.7 per cent.
Expedia can "remain the eight hundred pound gorilla in the industry," Daniel Kurnos, an analyst at Benchmark Co, told Bloomberg. "There are going to be a ton of synergies."
Shares of rival TripAdvisor also rose, last up 23.9 per cent.
The US consumer is showing signs of a cautious start to 2015 when it comes to shopping. Retail sales fell a larger-than-expected 0.8 per cent in January, after a 0.9 per cent decline in December, a Commerce Department report showed.
"There is a risk of a temporary soft patch for the economy as it is somewhat surprising the consumer has stopped spending their savings from petrol prices," Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at MUFG Union Bank in New York, told Reuters.