StockNEW YORK: US stocks closed solidly higher Friday propelled by strong Labor Department numbers for new job creation in April, but failed to make up the sharp losses of the day before.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 54.64 points (0.43 percent) to 12,638.81, after having been up as much as 175 points in morning trade.

The broader S&P 500 gained 5.10 points (0.38 percent) at 1,340.20, while the tech heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 12.84 points (0.46 percent) to 2,827.56.

After Thursday's more than one percent fall on the back of plummeting commodity prices, buying was sparked Friday by the data showing a net 244,000 nonfarm jobs were added to the US economy in April, with a strong surge in hiring in the services sector easily offsetting local and federal job losses.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011

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