U.S. Stocks Move Mostly Higher Following Monthly Jobs Data

Add as your preferred news source on Google Add Now After showing a lack of direction early in the session, stocks have moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday. The major averages have all moved to the upside after closing mixed for two straight days.Currently, the major averages are off their highs of the session but still in positive territory. The Dow is up 139.17 points or 0.3 percent at 49,405.28, the Nasdaq is up 132.37 points or 0.6 percent at 23,612.39 and the S&P 500 is up 30.14 points or 0.4 percent at 6,951.60.The strength on Wall Street reflects a positive reaction to the release of the Labor Department's closely watched report on employment in the month of December.With the report showing employment increased by less than expected in December, the data has led to some optimism about the outlook for interest rates.The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment rose by 50,000 jobs in December after climbing by a downwardly revised 56,000 jobs in November.Economists had expected employment to rise by 60,000 jobs compared to the addition of 64,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.Meanwhile, the report said the unemployment rate edged down to 4.4 percent in December from a revised 4.5 percent in November.The unemployment rate was expected to slip to 4.5 percent from the 4.6 percent originally reported for the previous month.While the Federal Reserve is still widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged at its next meeting later this month, the report may increase confidence in further rate cuts later this year."This mix gives the Fed confidence that the labor market is cooling on schedule," said Gina Bolvin, President of Bolvin Wealth Management Group. She added, "For investors, it reinforces the case for rate cuts in early 2026 and favors a strategy focused on growth with discipline and income with durability."Positive sentiment may also have been generated in reaction to a report from the University of Michigan showing consumer sentiment has improved by slightly more than expected in the month of January.The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index rose to 54.0 in January after climbing to 52.9 in December. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 53.5.Sector NewsInterest rate-sensitive housing stocks are turning in some of the market's best performances on the day, with the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index surging by 3.1 percent.Substantial strength is also visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.3 percent jump by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.Gold stocks are also seeing significant strength amid a sharp increase by the price of the precious metal, moving notably higher along utilities and computer hardware stocks.Other MarketsIn overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.6 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index advanced by 0.9 percent.The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.8 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.4 percent.In the bond market, treasuries are seeing modest strength after coming under pressure in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 1.6 basis points at 4.167 percent. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.comBusiness News