Japan's core machinery orders fell more than expected in July, as manufacturers balk at new investments in the face of sluggish global growth and weakness in major market China, pointing to a difficult period ahead for the world's third-largest economy.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro have signed bilateral cooperation agreements in areas such as economy, trade and tourism, state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) reported.

U.S. consumer prices accelerated by more than expected on a yearly basis in August, as a sharp uptick in gas prices contributed to lingering inflationary pressures in the world's largest economy that may impact the Federal Reserve's interest rate path for the rest of the year.

U.S. consumer prices increased by the most in more than a year in August amid a surge in the cost of gasoline, but a moderate rise in underlying inflation could encourage the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates on hold next Wednesday.

The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday said that the global debt as a share of economic output fell significantly in 2022 for the second year in a row, but the decline may be ending as a post-COVID growth surge fades.

Asian stocks rose on Thursday, as traders figured a small upside surprise for U.S. inflation was unlikely to push up interest rates and turned their focus to a European Central Bank meeting later in the session.