NEW YORK, US - US stocks rose modestly Thursday as upbeat news from retailers helped ease concerns about an economic downturn, taking the sting out of fresh record highs for crude oil prices.

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 51.38 points (0.40 percent) at 12,865.73 and the Nasdaq composite added 12.75 points (0.52 percent) to 2,451.24.

The Standard & Poor's broad-market index increased 5.02 points (0.36 percent) to a preliminary close of 1,397.59.

The market opened on a positive note as retailers' monthly sales reports led by Wal-Mart's suggested US economic activity was holding up better than expected.

Meanwhile the International Council of Shopping Centers said April US chain store sales rose by 3.6 percent on a year-over-year same-store basis.

That helped ease the sting of a record high for crude oil, which closed at an all-time peak of 123.69 dollars and then rose in after-hours deals to 124.57 dollars a barrel. --AFP