US stock markets rallied on Friday after the latest monthly jobs report pointed to strength in the country’s economy and political tensions in Italy eased.
Technology stocks led the rally, with gains in behemoths such as Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet lifting the S&P tech index to a record intraday high, reports Reuters.
Government data showed that the US economy added 223,000 nonfarm jobs in May, topping the average estimate of economists polled by Reuters.
The unemployment rate fell to an 18-year low of 3.8 per cent. Data on construction spending and industrial production also pointed to accelerating economic growth.
Markets also got a reprieve as Italy installed a coalition government, removing the risk of a repeat vote dominated by debate on whether the country would leave the euro.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 182.63 points, or 0.75 per cent, to 24,598.47, the S&P 500 gained 24.27 points, or 0.90 per cent, to 2,729.54 and the Nasdaq Composite added 96.37 points, or 1.29 per cent, to 7,538.49.
The Nasdaq was just over 1.0 per cent away from a record high as tech stocks largely cushioned the index in the past week even while the broader markets suffered. By comparison, the S&P 500 is 4.7 per cent off its peak.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 2.29-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.05-to-1 ratio favoured advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 27 new 52-week highs and eight new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 163 new highs and 38 new lows.