Stocks Opened Sharply Higher after Solid Jobs Data

U.S. stocks opened sharply higher on Friday, with sentiment boosted by nonfarm-payrolls data, which showed a healthy pace of employment gains in April. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately jumped 248.50 points, or 1.39%, to 18,172.56. The S&P 500 gained 24.82 points, or 1.19%, to 2,112.82. The Nasdaq Composite rose 58.73 points, or 1.19%, to 5,004.28.

U.S. job growth rebounded last month and the unemployment rate dropped to a near seven-year low of 5.4 percent, signs of a pick-up in economic momentum that could keep the Federal Reserve on track to hike interest rates this year. Nonfarm payrolls increased 223,000 as gains in services sector jobs offset weakness in mining, the Labor Department said on Friday.

McDonald’s Corp’s worldwide sales at established restaurants fell 0.6 percent in April as the fast-food giant fights to lure back customers and boost sales. Sales at the company’s U.S. restaurants open at least 13 months fell 2.3 percent last month, their third straight month of decline. The United States is McDonald’s top region for profit.

Syngenta AG rejected an unsolicited takeover offer valued at roughly $45 billion from U.S. rival Monsanto Co., saying the proposed deal undervalued the Swiss agrochemical giant.