* Energy sector, Coca-Cola shares underpin market

* Data adds to optimism on economic recovery

* Dow up 1.2 pct; S&P 500 up 1.4 pct; Nasdaq up 1.3 pct

* For up-to-the-minute market news click [STXNEWS/US] (Updates to close)

By Ellis Mnyandu

NEW YORK, May 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Friday, capping their third straight monthly advance, as rising commodity prices lifted shares of natural resource companies, while a sliding dollar boosted the allure of multinationals, including Coca-Cola Co (KO.N: Quote, Profile, Research).

Investors were encouraged by a report showing in May consumer confidence hit its highest in eight months, while the run-up in commodities fueled bets that overseas demand would underpin a recovery in the global economy.

U.S. front-month crude oil futures CLc1 rose $1.23 percent, or 1.8 percent, to $66.31 a barrel, supporting gains in such stocks as Chevron (CVX.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Exxon Mobil (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and ConocoPhillips (COP.N: Quote, Profile, Research). The S&P energy index rose 1.2 percent.

Shares of Coca-Cola, which gets the bulk of its sales from abroad, jumped almost 5 percent after the dollar slid to five-month lows against a basket of currencies.