S&P 500, Dow set record highs as tech shares jump

US stocks notched a record close on Friday in what proved to be a volatile day in financial markets following a much weaker than expected jobs report.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7% to 4,232.60, hitting a record high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 229.23 points, or 0.7%, to 34,777.76 to reach another closing high. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9% to 13,752.24.

U.S. job growth unexpectedly slowed in April, likely restrained by shortages of workers, the Labor Department report on Friday showed.

US employers hired 266,000 new workers in April, according to the labour department's monthly non-farm payrolls report, far below the level that economists had expected. The unemployment rate rose to 6.1% last month amid an escalating shortage of available workers. Meanwhile, March's originally estimated total of 916,000 was revised down to 770,000.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News