APJuly 3, 2014, 9:57 AM
Dow breaks 17,000 following strong U.S. job gains

NEW YORK - A strong jobs report pushed up the stock market higher Thursday, with the Dow Jones industrial average crossing 17,000 for the first time. The Department of Labor said employers added 288,000 workers last month, and the unemployment rate fell to 6.1 percent.

The Dow rose 71 points to 17,047 as of 10:09 a.m. ET. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose seven points to 1,981. The Nasdaq composite rose 15 points to 4,472.

The major indexes closed at their latest all-time highs Wednesday following more signs that the U.S. economy is picking up.

The Labor Department's report showed much stronger hiring in June than economists had forecast. The government also revised numbers up from previous months, saying employers added 217,000 workers in May and 304,000 in April. Monthly job gains so far this year have averaged 230,833, up from 194,250 in 2013.

Major European markets also rose. France's CAC 40 rose 0.7 percent, while Germany's DAX increased 0.8 percent. The FTSE 100 index of leading British companies gained 0.2 percent.

PetSmart, the pet supply chain, rose $7.88, or 13 percent, to $67.75 in early trading. Activist investor Jana Partners disclosed a 9.9 percent stake in the company.

Investors sold bonds after the strong jobs report. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.67 percent from 2.63 percent late Wednesday. Bond yields rise when prices fall. The price of crude oil slipped 40 cents to $104.08 a barrel.

U.S. markets will close at 1 p.m. Eastern time Thursday and will remained closed Friday for the Independence Day holiday.

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