Investing.com - U.S. stock prices soared Friday on news that the economy added far more jobs in July than expected.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 1.69%, the S&P 500 index was up 1.90% while the Nasdaq Composite index was up 2.00%.
The U.S. economy added a net 163,000 net nonfarm payrolls in July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, far more than market expectations for a gain of 100,000 and well above June's revised figure of 64,000.
The news sparked a global risk-on trading session in which investors ditched the greenback, a safe-harbor asset class, and scrambled for higher-yielding currencies and equities.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management's service-sector index outpaced expectations last month as well.
In a report, the Institute for Supply Management said that its non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 52.6 in July, up from 52.1 in June.
Analysts had expected the index to rise 52.0.
The service sector employs the bulk of the U.S. labor market.
Stocks also rose on sentiment that despite the strong jobs numbers out of the U.S., intervention from the Federal Reserve is still a very real possibility.
The Federal Reserve has said it will remain on the sidelines but poised to stimulate the economy as needed.
Investors went long on equities on sentiment that one solid jobs report doesn't signal an end to tepid recovery and a beginning of more robust expansion, which leaves the door open to Fed stimulus measures.
The overall unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in July from 8.2% despite the uptick in hiring, reflecting a view that an underlying weakness in the economy still persists.
Federal Reserve stimulus tools such as bond purchases from banks tend to weaken the dollar and send stocks gaining.
Elsewhere, eurozone retail sales beat expectations as well, rising 0.1% in June after gaining 0.8% in May.
Markets were expecting a decline of 0.1%.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average gainers included Hewlett-Packard, up 4.05%, Kraft Foods, up 4.03%, and Cisco Systems, up 3.94%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Verizon Communications, down 0.36%, McDonald's Corp., up 0.01%, and AT&T, up 0.08%.
European indices, meanwhile, finished up.
After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 4.83%, France's CAC 40 rose 4.38%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished up 3.93%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 2.21%.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 1.69%, the S&P 500 index was up 1.90% while the Nasdaq Composite index was up 2.00%.
The U.S. economy added a net 163,000 net nonfarm payrolls in July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, far more than market expectations for a gain of 100,000 and well above June's revised figure of 64,000.
The news sparked a global risk-on trading session in which investors ditched the greenback, a safe-harbor asset class, and scrambled for higher-yielding currencies and equities.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management's service-sector index outpaced expectations last month as well.
In a report, the Institute for Supply Management said that its non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 52.6 in July, up from 52.1 in June.
Analysts had expected the index to rise 52.0.
The service sector employs the bulk of the U.S. labor market.
Stocks also rose on sentiment that despite the strong jobs numbers out of the U.S., intervention from the Federal Reserve is still a very real possibility.
The Federal Reserve has said it will remain on the sidelines but poised to stimulate the economy as needed.
Investors went long on equities on sentiment that one solid jobs report doesn't signal an end to tepid recovery and a beginning of more robust expansion, which leaves the door open to Fed stimulus measures.
The overall unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in July from 8.2% despite the uptick in hiring, reflecting a view that an underlying weakness in the economy still persists.
Federal Reserve stimulus tools such as bond purchases from banks tend to weaken the dollar and send stocks gaining.
Elsewhere, eurozone retail sales beat expectations as well, rising 0.1% in June after gaining 0.8% in May.
Markets were expecting a decline of 0.1%.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average gainers included Hewlett-Packard, up 4.05%, Kraft Foods, up 4.03%, and Cisco Systems, up 3.94%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Verizon Communications, down 0.36%, McDonald's Corp., up 0.01%, and AT&T, up 0.08%.
European indices, meanwhile, finished up.
After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 4.83%, France's CAC 40 rose 4.38%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished up 3.93%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 2.21%.