WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Friday, regaining ground following the sell-off seen late in the previous session. The major averages have all moved back to the upside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the rebound.
In recent trading, the major averages have reached new highs for the session. The Nasdaq is up 163.66 points or 1.0 percent at 16,212.74, the S&P is up 39.78 points or 0.8 percent at 5,186.99 and the Dow is up 182.04 points or 0.5 percent at 38,779.02.
The rebound on Wall Street comes as traders look to pick up stocks at relatively reduced levels following the steep drop seen during Thursday's session, which dragged the Dow down to its lowest closing level in a month.
Traders have also reacted positively to a closely watched Labor Department report showing much stronger than expected job growth in the month of March.
The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment spiked by 303,000 jobs in March after surging by a downwardly revised 270,000 jobs in February.
Economists had expected employment to jump by 200,000 jobs compared to the addition of 275,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said the unemployment rate edged down to 3.8 percent in March from 3.9 percent in February, while economists had expected the unemployment rate to come in unchanged.
While the stronger than expected job growth may add to recent concerns about the outlook for interest rates, the report also showed a continued slowdown in the annual rate of wage growth.
The Labor Department said the annual rate of wage growth slowed to 4.1 percent in March from 4.3 percent in February, in line with estimates.
'While wages are growing solidly, their growth rate has moderated to the least since mid-2021,' said Bill Adams, Chief Economist for Comerica Bank. 'The economy-wide slowdown in inflationary pressures is extending to labor costs.'
'The Fed will be glad to see wage growth normalizing,' he added. 'This jobs report will make the Fed more confident that inflation is moderating; they say more confidence on this point is a precondition for making rate cuts this year.'
Sector News
Gold stocks have moved sharply higher following the pullback seen on Thursday, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 2.5 percent to its best intraday level in over ten months.
The rebound by gold stocks comes amid a substantial increase by the price of the precious metal, with gold for June delivery surging $31.20 to $2,339.70 an ounce.
Significant strength is also visible among retail stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index.
Software, semiconductor and housing stocks are also seeing some strength on the day, while interest rate-sensitive utilities and telecom stocks have moved to the downside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index plunged by 2.0 percent, while South Korea's Kospi slumped by 1.0 percent.
The major European markets have also shown significant moves to the downside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 1.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 1.4 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 1.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have climbed well off their early lows but remain firmly negative. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 5.3 basis points at 4.362 percent.
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