The stock market surged to its biggest gain since early September on Friday after another strong month of hiring by U.S. employers. The solid economic news opened the way for the Federal Reserve to begin raising interest rates back toward normal levels later this month.
Stocks started the day higher after the Labor Department said employers added 211,000 jobs in November. That was more than investors expected, and a sign that consumers are still spending and keeping the economy afloat even as manufacturing and energy companies are struggling.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 369.96 points, or 2.1 percent, to 17,847.63. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index had its best day since Sept. 8, rising 42.07 points, or 2.1 percent, to 2,091.69. The Nasdaq Composite increased 104.74 points, or 2.1 percent, to 5,142.27 points.
Energy stocks took a beating, and almost all of the largest losses in the S&P 500 went to energy companies. Oil cartel OPEC said it won’t cut oil production even though global stockpiles keep growing. The price of oil is trading near six-year lows.
The price of U.S. crude fell $1.11 to $39.97 a barrel in New York. Brent crude slid 84 cents to $43.
Warm weather in the U.S. is hurting demand for natural gas and heating oil. Natural gas drillers, pipeline companies and oil and gas service companies were all pummeled. Murphy Oil lost 85 cents to $25.46. Helmerich & Payne fell $2.23 to $53.38. Southwestern Energy shed 45 cents to $7.74. Chesapeake Energy declined 32 cents to $4.55.
In other trading of energy futures, wholesale gasoline fell 2.6 cents to $1.27 a gallon. Heating oil declined 1.6 cents to $1.342 a gallon. Natural gas inched up 0.5 cents to $2.816 per 1,000 cubic feet.
