Stocks Break 15,000 For First Time After Hiring Climbs
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A big gain in the job market lifted the stock market to a record high.
The Dow Jones industrial average crossed 15,000 for the first time, and the Standard and Poor's 500 index, a broader market measure, rose above 1,600.
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The government said U.S. employers added 165,000 jobs in April, more than economists were expecting. It also said more jobs were created in February and March than it had estimated earlier.
"We've all come to the conclusion that we are moving forward but slowly and slowly doesn't seem to be too much of a concern anymore as long as we're going in the right direction," said New York Stock Exchange trader Doreen Mogavero.
The unemployment rate also fell to 7.5 percent, the lowest in four years, from 7.6 percent the month before.
A series of weak manufacturing reports, disappointing retail sales in March, signs of an economic slowdown in China and mixed earnings reports for the first quarter have rattled the market in recent weeks. Friday's jobs numbers are reassuring investors.
The S&P 500 is up 13 percent from the start of the year. The Dow is up 14 percent.
When the jobs numbers were announced at 8:30 a.m., gold dropped, oil rose and the dollar strengthened against the yen.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose sharply as traders moved money out of bonds and into riskier assets like stocks. The yield rose to 1.72 percent from 1.63 percent the day before, its lowest level of the year.
The Nasdaq composite rose 47 points, or 1.4 percent, to 3,387.
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