US markets end higher after jobs report shows surprise jump in payrolls

06 Jun 2020 Evaluate

The US markets ended higher on Friday as the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report seemed to prove traders were right to be optimistic about a quick economic recovery. The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 2.51 million jobs in May after plummeting by a revised 20.69 million jobs in April. The record spike in employment came as a shock to participants, who had expected the loss of another 8.0 million jobs following the nosedive of 20.5 million jobs originally reported for the previous month. Employment rose sharply in leisure and hospitality, construction, education and health services, and retail trade, according to the Labor Department.

The Labor Department claimed the improvements in the labor market reflected a limited resumption of economic activity that had been curtailed in March and April due to the coronavirus pandemic and efforts to contain the spread of the disease. Besides, Energy stocks led the broad based rally, benefiting from a sharp increase by the price of crude oil. Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, Philadelphia Oil Service Index skyrocketed by 12.9 percent, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index soared by 8 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index surged up by 7.6 percent. Banking stocks also moved substantially higher, driving the KBW Bank Index up by 4.6 percent. With the gain, the index reached a three-month closing high.

Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 829.16 points or 3.15 percent to 27,110.98, Nasdaq rose 198.27 points or 2.06 percent 9,814.08 and S&P 500 was up by 81.58 points or 2.62 percent to 3,193.93.

© 2026 The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. MoneyWorks4Me ® is a registered trademark of The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd.

×