Jobs data lifts Wall St despite tariffs

US stocks have climbed, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hitting their highest levels in two weeks, as strong US jobs growth blunted the impact of an escalating US-China trade dispute.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 213,000 jobs in the past month, the US Labor Department said on Friday, topping expectations of 195,000, while the unemployment rate rose from an 18-year low to 4 per cent and average hourly earnings rose 0.2 per cent.

The moderate wage growth allayed fears of a strong buildup in inflation pressures and boosted optimism that the Federal Reserve would stay on a path of gradual interest rate increases.

“This really is the best outcome we could have hoped for, more jobs without a whole lot of wage pressures,” Kim Forrest, senior portfolio manager at Fort Pitt Capital Group, said.