Jobless Figures Power Wall Street Higher At Close

Markets closed sharply higher on Friday after the government reported a big increase in hiring last month.

Investors were relieved on Friday to see that wage growth slowed. A jump in wages a month ago raised worries about inflation.

Employers added 313,000 net new non-farm jobs last month, the biggest monthly increase since July 2016, while the unemployment rate remained steady at 4.1 percent for the fifth month in a row.

Technology companies wiped out the last of their losses from a steep market plunge a month ago. Banks climbed in tandem with interest rates.

Friday marks nine years since the beginning of the current bull market, the second-longest since World War II.

The S&P 500 rose 1.7 percent to finish at 2,786.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 1.8 percent to 25,335. The Nasdaq rose 1.8 percent to 7,560, another record high. (AP)