US stocks mixed

Wall Street ended a strong week narrowly mixed today after the market absorbed a weaker-than-expected employment report that curbed investors’ bullish sentiment following three days of gains. Nonetheless, stocks showed their biggest weekly gains since August.

The January jobs report, which showed the US unemployment rate at a four-month high of 4.6%, came as a surprise on Wall Street.

A reading of 4.5% had been expected.

The Labour Department report signalled that employers were more cautious than expected in adding jobs in the new year.

The US economy added 111,000 jobs last month, below the 150,000 that had been expected. The figures are subject to revisions but nevertheless draw scrutiny.

Investors also received word from the Commerce Department that US factory orders showed their biggest gain in nine months in December, rising 2.4%.

And the final Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment reading for January rose to 96.9 from 91.7 in December, its highest level in two years, but fell short of a preliminary reading of 98.

“They’re by no means terrible numbers here,” said Andy Richman, fixed-income strategist at SunTrust Bank’s personal asset management arm. He contends the readings signal the Federal Reserve’s strategy of standing pat on interest rates is working. “This validates their wait-and-hold approach is starting to pay off.”

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 20.19, or 0.16%, to 12,653.49. Shortly after the opening bell the Dow logged a fresh trading high of 12,683.93 before moving lower; the previous high, set on Thursday, was 12,682.57.

Broader stock indicators were higher. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 2.45, or 0.17%, to 1,448.39, its highest level in more than six years, and the Nasdaq composite index advanced 7.50, or 0.30%, to 2,475.88.

For the week, the Dow was up 1.33%, while the Nasdaq gained 1.66% and the S&P 1.84%.