Major Averages Close Sharply Higher In Reaction To Jobs Report

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Friday, adding to the moderate gains posted in the previous session. With the strength on the day, the Dow reached its best closing level in well over two months.

The rally on Wall Street largely reflected a positive reaction to the Labor Department's highly anticipated monthly jobs report from April.

The jobs data was seen as solid but not strong enough to put a June interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve back on the table.

Most of the major sectors moved to the upside on the day, reflecting the broad based buying interest generated in reaction to the jobs report.

Natural gas stocks posted particularly strong gains, driving the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index up by 2.6 percent. The gain by the index came after it pulled back sharply over the three previous sessions, hitting its lowest levels in almost a month.

The rebound by natural gas stocks came amid a notable increase by the price of the commodity, as natural gas for June delivery climbed $0.146 to $2.88 per million BTUs.

Significant strength was also visible among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 2.6 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. Biogen (BIIB) posted a standout gain after announcing a $5 billion share repurchase program.

Oil service stocks also turned in a strong performance on the day, moving higher along with the price of crude oil. With crude for June delivery rising $0.45 to $59.39 a barrel, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index jumped 2.2 percent.

Networking, tobacco, pharmaceutical, and chemical stocks also moved notably higher, contributing to the broad based rally.

After showing a strong move to the upside in early trading, the major averages remained firmly positive throughout the session. The Dow soared 267.05 points or 1.5 percent to 18,191.11, the Nasdaq jumped 58.00 points or 1.2 percent to 5,003.55 and the S&P 500 surged up 28.10 points or 1.4 percent to 2,116.10.

For the week, the Dow advanced by 0.9 percent and the S&P 500 rose by 0.4 percent, while the Nasdaq edged slightly lower.