Wall Street extends gains, with Dow Jones above 33 thousand points

US stock indices rose on Friday after data that showed slower US inflation this quarter.

Data

Earlier data showed US consumer spending growth slowed down to 0.3% last month from 0.5% in the previous reading.

On a yearly basis, consumer spending rose 5%, slowing down from 5.3% in January, and hitting 1-1/5 year lows. 

White House and Banking Sector

US President Joe Biden asked federal regulators to take measures to protect the US banking sector following the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. 

In a press release, the White House said that Biden's suggestions go in line with his recent efforts to bolster regulations of major banks to avoid a repetition of such situations. 

On trading, Dow Jones rose 0.6%, or 180 points to 33,040 as of 15:00 GMT, while S&P 500 climbed 0.6%, or 25 points to 4,076, as NASDAQ added 0.8%, or 99 points to 12,112.