Data showed today that the US retail sales index held steadily in April, missing forecasts of a rise.

The reading of the retail sales index for April was at 0.0%, lower than forecasts of a rise by 1%, and lower than the previous reading of a rise by 10.7% in March.

European stocks rose on Friday, following Wall Streets rebound yesterday led by technology shares.

Recent economic data in the US signaled a rise in inflation, which raised market concerns.

Data also showed a jump in the US consumer price index during the past month.

President of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis James Bullard projected that the US inflation rate will rise above the Fed's target of 2% during 2022.

This lifted the US Treasury bond yields, which weighs down on stocks and commodities.

Back to Europe, the pan Stoxx Europe 600 index rose by 0.4% or 1.5 points, to 439 points as of 09:13 GMT.

France's CAC 40 rose 0.5% or 47 points to 6,321, Germany's DAX index rose 0.4% or 56 to 15,256, and the UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.7% or 47 points to 7,010.

The US dollar fell against most of its counterparts on Friday, ahead of the release of key US economic data, while markets follow the latest updates of the coronavirus pandemic.

The coronavirus crisis continued to escalate in India especially after a new mutated strain of the virus emerged in the country, which is more severe and faster to spread.

Recent economic data in the US signaled a rise in inflation, which raised market concerns.

The US retail sales reading will be released later today, which shows the levels of spending and consumption in the US economy.

Data also showed a jump in the US consumer price index and the producer price index this week, which signals that inflation will rise above the Fed's target soon.

The dollar index fell against a basket of major currencies by 0.3% to 90.5 points as of 11:01 GMT, after hitting a high of 90.8 points and a low of 90.4 points.

US stock indices rose on Thursday, after the release of upbeat economic data, with Dow Jones closing above 34,000 points again.

The US unemployment claims fell to 473,000 last week, beating forecasts of 487,000.

The US producer price index rose 0.6% last month, higher than forecasts of a rise by 0.3%.

To the oil market, WTI crude June futures fell 3.4% or $2.26, and closed at $63.82 a barrel, after hitting a high of $65.8 and a low of $63.8.

Brent July futures fell 3.3% or $2.27, and closed at $67.05 a barrel, after hitting a high of $69.04 and a low of $67.2.

As for stocks, Dow Jones rose 1.3% or 433 points, and closed at 34,021, with a day high of 34,181, and a low of 33,623.

Nasdaq rose 0.7% or 93 points to 13,124, with a high of 13,247 and a low of 13,007.

S&P 500 rose 1.2% or 49 points to 4,112, after hitting a high of 4,131 and a low of 4,074.