S&P 500 climbs on jobs report

Overseas markets rise after breakthrough on Great Britain leaving the European Union

Stocks rose Friday following a betterthan-expected U.S. jobs report, and the strong finish pushed the Standard & Poor’s 500 index to its third straight weekly gain despite some weakness earlier in the week.

The gains were widespread, and telecom and health care stocks helped lead the way. Overseas markets were also higher after negotiators hit a breakthrough in the United Kingdom’s efforts to leave the European Union.

The S&P 500 rose 14.52 points, or 0.6 percent, to finish at 2,651.50, another record. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 117.68, or 0.5 percent, to 24,329.16, and the Nasdaq composite rose 27.24, or 0.4 percent, to 6,840.08.

The U.S. jobs report, which is the economic highlight of each month, showed that employers added 228,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate remained at a low 4.1 percent. It’s the latest evidence that the U.S. economy continues to improve, in sync with the rest of the world.

Paychecks, though, have not been getting much bigger, and hourly wages rose less last month than economists expected. Higher pay would help workers spend more, but it could also lead to higher inflation.

“The way risk markets are looking at it is it’s very much a Goldilocks environment: still muted or low inflation and very positive growth,” said Erin Browne, head of asset allocation at UBS Asset Management.

Biotechnology stocks helped lead the market, and health care stocks in the S&P 500 rose 1.1 percent for one of the biggest gains of the 11 sectors that make up the index. Alexion Pharmaceuticals jumped $7.68, or 7.2 percent, to $114.46 for the biggest gain in the S&P 500 following a report from The New York Times that an activist hedge fund has bought shares in the company and pushed it to do more to lift its stock price.

Technology stocks in the S&P 500 rose 0.4 percent.

Stock markets in Europe climbed after negotiators reached a key agreement that allows talks to continue to the next stage for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. Investors are hoping for a smooth exit.

The price of oil continued to recover from its sharp loss in the middle of the week. Benchmark U.S. crude gained 67 cents to settle at $57.36 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose $1.20 to $63.40 per barrel.