NEW YORK (AP) - Wall Street extended its advance Friday after a government employment report showed the nation's employers cut far fewer jobs than expected last month, stirring optimism about the buoyancy of the economy.
The better-than-expected report comes days after the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates by a quarter point and signaled that it could stand pat at future meetings -- a move that could help shore up an anemic dollar and combat worrisome inflation.
The Labor Department's report that employers cut 20,000 jobs in April was a relief to Wall Street, which had been expecting payrolls to decrease by 70,000 jobs. This marked the fourth straight month of job losses, but the data signaled that perhaps the economy might be resisting falling into recession.
In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 84.92, or 0.65 percent, to 13,094.92.
Broader stock indicators also rose. The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 10.21, or 0.72 percent, to 1,419.55, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 13.99, or 0.56 percent, to 2,494.70.
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