<div id="readability-page-1" class="page">U.S. stocks traded higher this morning, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining more than 200 points on Friday. Following the market opening Friday, the Dow traded up 0.20% to 49,695.04 while the NASDAQ gained 0.82% to 26,016.59. The S&amp;P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.50% to 7,373.60. Leading and Lagging Sectors Information technology shares jumped by 1.5% on Friday. In trading on Friday, energy stocks fell by 0.7%. Top Headline U.S. nonfarm payrolls defied expectations in April, with total employment edging up by 115,000 jobs to comfortably beat the FactSet consensus estimate of a 65,000 rise. Despite the stronger-than-expected job growth, the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.3%. On the inflation front, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 6 cents, or 0.2%, to $37.41, bringing the annual wage increase to 3.6%. Equities Trading UP <ul> <li>Phoenix Asia Holdings Ltd ( PHOE ) shares shot up 128% to $43.50. The company recently announced a $1 billion stock acquisition agreement to acquire clinical-stage pharmaceutical firm ACEA Pharma Inc., marking a dramatic pivot from its construction roots into oncology and autoimmune drug development.</li> <li>Shares of Innodata Inc ( INOD ) got a boost, surging 91% to $87.10 after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and issued FY26 sales guidance above estimates.</li> <li>Antelope Enterprise Holdings Ltd ( AEHL ) shares were also up, gaining 85% to $0.94. Antelope Enterprise ( AEHL ) announced $190,000 realized gain from “Genius Plan” for managing Bitcoin treasury reserves and announced $95,000 share buyback effective June 6.</li> </ul> Equities Trading DOWN <ul> <li>Artivion, Inc. ( AORT ) shares dropped 33% to $23.68 after the company reported first-quarter financial results and cut its FY26 sales guidance with its midpoint below estimates.</li> <li>Shares of AIM ImmunoTech Inc. ( AIM ) were down 34% to $0.3671. AIM ImmunoTech ( AIM ) announced exercise of warrants for approximately $4.2 million in gross proceeds.</li> <li>Kodiak AI, Inc. ( KDK ) was down, falling 33% to $6.10 after the company reported first-quarter financial results. The company announced a $100 million common stock and warrant private placement.</li> </ul> <div>CommoditiesIn commodity news, oil traded down 0.3% to $94.50 while gold traded up 0.8% at $4,750.60.</div> Silver traded up 2.1% to $81.885 on Friday, while copper rose 1.9% to $6.2930. Euro zone European shares were lower today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 declined 0.4%, while Spain's IBEX 35 Index fell 0.5%. London's FTSE 100 fell 0.1%, Germany's DAX fell 0.9%, while France's CAC 40 declined 0.7%. Asia Pacific Markets Asian markets closed lower on Friday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 falling 0.19%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declining 0.87%, China's Shanghai Composite falling 0.003% and India's BSE Sensex falling 0.66% Economics <ul> <li>U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 jobs to comfortably beat the FactSet consensus estimate of a 65,000 rise.</li> <li>The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.3%.</li> </ul> Photo via Shutterstock</div>

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U.S. stocks rose, with the Nasdaq gaining over 200 points. The Dow increased by 0.20%, and the S&P 500 rose by 0.50%. Nonfarm payrolls added 115,000 jobs in April, surpassing expectations, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%. Notable stock movements included Phoenix Asia Holdings surging 128% after a $1 billion acquisition announcement, while Artivion shares fell 33% following disappointing financial results. Commodities saw mixed results, with oil down 0.3% and gold up 0.8%. European and Asian markets closed lower.

- U.S. stocks experienced gains this morning, with the Nasdaq Composite increasing over 200 points and the S&P 500 rising by 0.50%.  
- Nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 jobs in April, exceeding expectations despite an unchanged unemployment rate of 4.3%.  
- Additionally, Asian markets closed lower, and commodity prices showed mixed results with oil down by 0.3% and gold up by 0.8%.

Nasdaq Jumps 200 Points; US Adds 115,000 Jobs In April