Stocks Ended Higher Despite Loss of Jobs

U.S. stocks ended sharply higher on Friday despite Labor Department data showing 20.5 million jobs were lost in April. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 455.43 points, or 1.91%, to 24,331.32. The S&P 500 gained 48.61 points, or 1.69% to 2,929.80. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 141.66 points, or 1.58%, to 9,121.32. For the week, the Dow advanced 2.6%, the S&P 500 ended 3.5% higher, while the Nasdaq advanced 6%.

Crude-oil futures finished higher on Friday, with optimism over production cuts and rising demand for gasoline lifting to U.S. benchmark prices up by 25% this week. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery rose $1.19, or 5.1%, to settle at $24.74 a barrel.July Brent crude added $1.51, or 5.1%, at $30.97 a barrel.