US stocks rise on retail sales data

US stock indices rose on Friday, lifted by retail sales data, amid focus the latest updates of the coronavirus pandemic.

The US health authorities announced that people who are fully vaccinated no longer need to wear a mask in public places.

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.

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

As for stocks, Dow Jones rose 0.8% or 287 points to 34,308 as of 15:28 GMT, Nasdaq rose 1.8% or 240 points to 13,362, and S&P 500 rose 1.2% or 50 points to 4,164.