Dow, S&P 500 clinch new records after blockbuster jobs report
U.S. stocks closed mostly higher Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 index sweeping to fresh highs after U.S. payrolls trounced expectations. The Dow
DJIA,
closed near 35,208, according to a preliminary estimate, up 144 points or 0.4%, while the S&P 500
SPX,
gained 7 points, 0.2%, to clinch a record close of 4,437. The tech-heavy Nasdaq
COMP,
gave up 59 points to close near 14,836, a 0.4% decline. U.S. employers added a net new 943,000 jobs in July, much better than forecast, and the jobless rate fell sharply to 5.4%. Investors on Friday turned to areas of the market that are most likely to do better in a growing economy. The exchange-traded fund that tracks the financial sector
XLF,
jumped nearly 2%, while energy
XLE,
gained 1%. Stocks that benefit in a stay-at-home environment, like Amazon.com Inc.
AMZN,
slipped.
