US: Stocks rise after strong US jobs report

[NEW YORK] Wall Street stocks opened moderately higher Friday after an unexpectedly strong November employment report showed job gains across most of the economy.

Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 46.17 points (0.26 per cent) at 17,946.27.

The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 4.40 (0.21 per cent) to 2,076.32, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index added 15.51 (0.33 per cent) at 4,784.94.

The Labour Department reported the economy added a much stronger-than-expected 321,000 jobs in November, the highest monthly number in nearly three years, and revised upward the prior two months' gains by 44,000 jobs.

"These are all good things from an economic standpoint. The question is, will they be thought of as good things from a market standpoint since these trends, should they continue, will raise the specter of interest rate hikes... from the Fed," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com in a market note.

AFP