Jobs boost helps Dow close on a high

Wall Street ended a volatile and unusual week on a strong note today, with the Dow Jones industrials gaining more than 146 points on the trength of a positive job creation report and a sharp drop in oil prices.

Wall Street ended a volatile and unusual week on a strong note today, with the Dow Jones industrials gaining more than 146 points on the strength of a positive job creation report and a sharp drop in oil prices.

The Dow rose 146.85, or 1.43%, to 10,449.14.

Broader stock indicators also moved sharply higher. The Nasdaq composite index climbed 37.22, or 1.79%, to 2,112.88, its best showing since January 3.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was up 13.99, or 1.17%, at 1,211.86.

As European markets surged higher one day after the deadly terrorist bombings in London, Wall Street welcomed the US Labour Department’s jobs report.

While the 146,000 jobs created in June were less than the 195,000 economists hoped for, the unemployment rate fell to 5% from 5.1% in May, and hourly earnings rose 0.2%.