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US stocks rally as Dow hits record

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US stocks have roared higher after jobs growth in October widely topped forecasts, lifting the Dow to an all-time closing high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 167.80 points (1.08 per cent) to 15,761.78 on Friday, topping the blue-chip index’s record close two days ago.

The broad-based S&P 500 Index advanced 23.46 (1.34 per cent) to 1,770.61, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite added 61.90 (1.60 per cent) at 3,919.23.

Stock markets rebounded from Thursday’s steep losses after the Labor Department reported the US economy added 204,000 jobs in October, double what analysts forecast, and revisions to the previous two months added another 60,000 jobs.

“Investors may have begun to price in expectations for when the Federal Reserve will begin its tapering process” for its monetary stimulus, Charles Schwab & Co. said in a market note.

There was good news, too, on personal incomes, which rose a more-than-expected 0.5 per cent in September, the Commerce Department reported separately, while personal spending edged up 0.2 per cent.

The positive data offset a fall in the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index for November, to 72.0 from 73.2 in October.

Financial shares were in demand.

On the Dow, JPMorgan Chase led the gainers, soaring 4.5 per cent.

Goldman Sachs added 2.2 per cent and American Express rose 1.1 per cent.

Twitter dived on its second day of trade after a blockbuster Wall Street debut.

Shares in the messaging service, which has not made a profit, dropped 7.2 per cent to close at $US41.65.

On Thursday the stock shot up 73 per cent to $US44.90, from the initial public offering price of $US26.

Dow member The Walt Disney Co surged 2.1 per cent after reporting a better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter, with earnings of 77 US cents a share beating estimates by a penny.

McDonald’s, another Dow member, slipped 0.2 per cent.

The fast-food giant reported global comparable store sales rose 0.5 per cent in October.

“We cannot figure out how it can maintain any future growth at this rate, compared to the past decade,” said Jon Ogg of 24/7 Wall St.

Bond prices slumped on the strong jobs report.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury jumped to 2.75 per cent from 2.61 per cent on Thursday, while the 30-year yield increased to 3.84 per cent from 3.73 per cent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.