Stocks rise after strong jobs report eases fears of an economic slowdown - CNBC

Stocks rose on Friday after a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report assuaged fears that the economy was slowing down, lifting investor sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 69 points higher, led by Goldman Sachs and Nike. The S&P 500 climbed 0.3% as the energy and consumer discretionary sectors outperformed. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.

The U.S. economy added 196,000 jobs in March, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a print of 175,000. However, wage growth expanded 3.2%, below an expected gain of 3.4%.

Wall Street was looking forward to this report after the previous jobs data showed growth of just 20,000. That number was revised higher to 33,000 on Friday.

"It gave the market a lot of what it wanted to see," said JJ Kinahan, chief market strategist at TD Ameritrade. "The trend reverted back to where the market wanted to see it."

"The test today is going to be whether we hold the gains or we see a Friday fade," said Kinahan.

Treasury yields whipsawed. The benchmark 10-year yield jumped to nearly 2.55% before sliding back to around 2.5%. The 2-year rate rose to about 2.37% before trading at 2.34%.

Friday's strong jobs report comes after the release of disappointing economic data earlier in the week. Activity in the U.S. services sector fell to its lowest level since August 2017 while payrolls data released on Wednesday was also below expectations.

Still, the major averages were on track for solid weekly gains. The S&P 500 and Dow were both up more than 1.5% through Thursday's close. The Nasdaq had gained more than 2% in that time period.

Stocks got a boost this week as China and the U.S. appeared to make progress in trade negotiations. President Donald Trump said Thursday that swift progress had been made, adding "we'll know over the next four weeks" whether a deal can be reached. Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, meanwhile, said new consensus had been reached by both countries on the text of a trade agreement, according to official state news agency Xinhua.

Those gains come as investors brace themselves for the upcoming earnings season, which is set to start next week with J.P. Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo among the companies set to report.

—CNBC's Ryan Browne contributed to this report.

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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/05/stock-market-us-china-trade-nonfarm-payrolls-in-focus.html

2019-04-05 13:34:27Z
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