US markets boosted by falling unemployment

NEW YORK: US stock markets rose Friday as traders welcomed a drop in US unemployment.

Consumer goods firms led the Dow's rise, after news that the US jobless rate fell for the fourth straight month in March, to 8.8 percent from 8.9 percent in February, official data showed.

It was the lowest level of unemployment since March 2009, thanks to stronger job creation, the Labor Department said in a report signaling a turnaround in the troubled labor market.

"Stocks ended the week on a positive note after a strong March US employment report boosted optimism," said Michael Bratus of Moody's Analytics.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 blue-chip stocks added 56.99 points (0.46 percent) to 12,376.72 by the closing bell.

The broad-based S&P 500 index rose 6.58 points (0.50 percent) to 1,332.41, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 8.53 points (0.31 percent) at 2,789.60.

Caterpillar was among the Dow's biggest gainers, rising 1.6 percent.

Coca-Cola was up 1.3 percent and Home Depot added 1.4 percent.

The banking sector rebounded from losses seen Thursday, when the Federal

Reserve released data on which institutions took emergency loans during the financial crisis and Ireland revealed yet more damage to its banking sector.

Goldman Sachs shares rose one percent, Bank of America was up one percent and JPMorgan Chase was up 0.5 percent.

The bond market was slightly higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 3.45 percent from 3.47 percent late Thursday, while that for the 30-year fell to 4.49 percent from 4.54 percent.

Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.