US stocks rise on upbeat manufacturing data

New York, May 1 (IANS) US stock jumped Tuesday, with the blue-chip Dow rallying to a fresh four-year high, as market sentiment was boosted by upbeat manufacturing data.

According to the Institute for Supply Management, its factory index climbed to 54.8 last month, the highest in 10 months, from 53.4 in March, while investors were expecting a drop to 53, Xinhua reported.

In a separate report, the Commerce Department said construction spending went up slightly in March, following two months of declines.

Earlier, data from China showed the country's manufacturing sector was expanding for the fifth straight month. Chinese official PMI for April came in at 53.3, below the market consensus of 53.6 but still up from 53.1 in March and also the highest in about a year.

In midday trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 116.10 points, or 0.88 percent, to 13,329.73. The Standard & Poor's 500 was up 16.19 points, or 1.16 percent, to 1,414.10. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 35.59 points, or 1.17 percent, to 3,081. 95.