US open: Stocks higher as payrolls top expectations, Fedspeak in focus

Shares on Wall Street trading jumped on Friday on the back of what analysts said was a "strong" jobs report, even as Treasuries rallied on the back of what at first glance was a weaker than expected print on wage growth and 'market chatter' pointing to more moderate growth ahead.

As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.29% at 26,383.98, while the S&P 500 was trading 0.49% firmer at 2,931.77 and the Nasdaq moved ahead 0.92% to 8,110.69.

In parallel, the yield on the policy-sensitive benchmark two-year US Treasury note was down by two basis points to 2.32%.

Investors were also waiting on a slew of potential market-moving speeches from Fed officials on Friday, with seven Federal Open Market Committee members in attendance at a conference at the Hoover Institution.

The Dow opened 76 points higher at the opening bell, after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that monthly non-farm payroll growth stormed past forecasts again, jumping by 263,000 in April and that the unemployment rate fell by two-tenths of a percentage point to 3.6%.

But the drop in the jobless rate was the result of nearly half a million Americans leaving the labour force opting to leave the labour force last month, while average hourly earnings slowed a tad and the work week shrank in length.

Nevertheless, according to Iain Shepherdson at Pantheon Macroeconomics, the slowdown in earnings was the result of statistical quirks, although the drop in the labour force participation rate was not.

"Overall, this is a strong report, but payroll gains can’t continue at this pace. What can continue, though, is the downshift in unemployment, and that means more power to scarce labor and faster wage gains in due course," Shepherdson said.

"No immediate policy implications, but its not hard to imagine that a run of reports like this would eventually prompt something of a rethink at the Fed."

The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index meanwhile dipped by 0.6 points from March's level to hit 55.5, falling short of a rise to 57.2 anticipated by economists.

In corporate news, Newell Brands stock soared 11.67% in early trade after topping Wall Street estimates for both earnings and sales, while Fiat Chrysler drove ahead 5.92% despite US sales decelerating in Q1.

Dow Jones - Risers

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $128.51 1.82%
American Express Co. (AXP) $118.78 1.30%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $51.19 1.27%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $196.45 1.17%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $41.22 1.10%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $106.04 1.06%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $117.52 0.98%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $79.49 0.98%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $136.46 0.95%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $57.05 0.94%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $77.68 -1.26%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $54.58 -0.65%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $140.90 -0.48%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $34.51 -0.45%
3M Co. (MMM) $185.42 -0.35%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $141.50 -0.32%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $231.24 -0.31%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $143.01 -0.05%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $134.13 -0.01%
Boeing Co. (BA) $375.81 0.00%

S&P 500 - Risers

Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $63.75 9.93%
Flowserve Corp. (FLS) $51.95 9.23%
Resmed Inc. (RMD) $113.50 8.66%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $55.37 7.51%
Teleflex Inc. (TFX) $297.16 5.90%
MetLife Inc. (MET) $47.92 4.83%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $54.88 4.65%
Apache Corp. (APA) $31.15 4.60%
McKesson Corp. (MCK) $124.11 4.29%
Eog Resources Inc. (EOG) $92.99 4.28%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $260.31 -16.26%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $59.19 -11.14%
Fortinet Inc. (FTNT) $85.65 -6.40%
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (LW) $66.32 -5.39%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $47.06 -5.03%
Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) $15.70 -4.99%
Kellogg Co. (K) $56.61 -4.68%
Quanta Services Inc. (PWR) $38.59 -4.50%
Noble Energy Inc. (NBL) $25.02 -3.84%
Skyworks Solutions Inc. (SWKS) $87.35 -3.79%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $568.79 17.92%
Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $63.75 9.93%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $55.37 7.51%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $254.56 4.29%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $324.61 3.81%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $34.82 3.63%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $1,962.20 3.23%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $288.25 2.80%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $248.88 2.70%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $66.98 2.57%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $59.19 -11.14%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $47.06 -5.03%
Skyworks Solutions Inc. (SWKS) $87.35 -3.79%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $124.62 -2.82%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $92.18 -2.35%
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $313.55 -0.72%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $378.38 -0.70%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $54.58 -0.65%
Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $116.31 -0.56%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $182.45 -0.40%