S&P Heads for Winning Week Despite Jobs Disappointment

Stocks rose on Friday even after the release of data showing the U.S. economy unexpectedly lost jobs last month. Those gains put Wall Street on track to end the first trading week of 2021 on a high note.

The Dow Jones Industrials slid 82.55 points to 30,958.58.

The S&P 500 inched up 1.69 points to 3,805.48, to hit a fresh intraday record.

The consumer discretionary and real estate sectors each rose more than 1% to lead the S&P 500 higher.

The NASDAQ advanced 41.62 points to 13,109.09, adding to its all-time high.

Tesla shares gained more than 4%, hitting an all-time high, to power the NASDAQ higher.

The U.S. economy lost 140,000 jobs in December, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a gain of 50,000.

The unexpected drop in employment came as the recent surge in COVID-19 cases across the country has forced state and local governments to re-take stricter measures to mitigate the outbreak. More than 21.5 million coronavirus cases have now been confirmed in the U.S., according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Prices for the 10-Year Treasury faded, raising yields to 1.10% from Thursday’s 1.08%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Oil prices gained 71 cents to $51.54 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices gave back $58.90 to $1,854.70 U.S. an ounce.