Investing.com - U.S. stocks rose on Friday buoyed by a consumer sentiment report that surprised many investors.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.79%, the S&P 500 index rose 0.48%, while the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.08%.
Earlier Friday, the preliminary Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index remained unchanged at 81.2 for February, beating expectations for a fall to 80.6, which drew applause on Wall Street.
Elsewhere, the Federal Reserve reported that U.S. industrial production fell 0.3% in January, defying expectations for a 0.3% rise after a 0.3% increase the previous month, though equities market shrugged off the news and blamed it on rough winter weather.
Data also showed that U.S. import prices rose 0.1% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.1% downtick after a 0.2% rise in December.
While economic indicators have come in hit-or-miss this year, many went long on stocks betting that the second quarter will bring more robust economic data.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included UnitedHealth, up 3.23%, Exxon Mobil, up 2.96%, and Procter & Gamble, up 2.06%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Verizon, down 1.71%, AT&T, down 1.03%, and Goldman Sachs, down 0.24%.
European indices, meanwhile, finished higher.
After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.57%, France's CAC 40 rose 0.63%, while Germany's DAX 30 rose 0.68%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 0.06%.