Wall Street ends week on positive note on soild data and oil rebound

U.S. stocks closed the week with gains as investors cheered the strong rebound in April job growth numbers and the bounce-back seen in crude oil prices.

After falling nearly 5% on Thursday, the barrel of WTI gained 2% and settled at $46.44 amid heightened expectations of an extension to OPEC's output cut agreement. U.S. nonfarm payrolls grew by 211,000 jobs in April after March's dismal gain of 79,000 (revised from 98,000). Furthermore, the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in nearly a decade at 4.4%.

Boosted by the energy sector's 1.2% rise, the S&P 500 Index added 12.5 points, or 0.52%, to 2,398.00 and refreshed its record high for the first time since March 1. Despite today's strong performance, the index rose just 0.6% in the week. Commenting on today's data and the market reaction to it, "It seemed like a pretty good jobs report, it would seem to allay some of the concerns that this recovery we have seen in the U.S. economy is faltering. However, there’s an unwillingness right now for the market to not just move higher but to move in any direction," William Delwiche, Investment Strategist at Robert W. Baird & Co in Milwaukee, told Reuters.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the week above the 21K mark as it rose 55.47 points, or 0.26%, to 20,967.98. Finally, the Nasdaq Composite gained 25.42 points, or 0.42%, to 6,100.76.

Headlines from the U.S. session:

• US: Consumer credit increased 4.25% during the first quarter
• Fed's Rosengren: Prefer to reduce balance sheet gradually, relatively soon
• U.S. President Trump signs $1trl spending bill to keep govt open through September - AP
• Fed's Bullard: Fed has delayed too long on trimming balance sheet
• CME Group FedWatch's June hike probability leaped above 80%
• NFP: Solid job gains, subdued wage growth- Danske Bank
• WTI rises above $46 ahead of Baker Hughes rig count
• US April NFP: A solid report - Wells Fargo
• NY Fed Nowcast: GDP growth 1.8% for 2017:Q2