Stocks have extended their gains in mid-day trading, with all three major indexes near session highs. Stocks are rallying on the back of better than expected non-farm payrolls for the month of January.
The report released by the Labor Department earlier today showed that the U.S. economy added 243,000 jobs in the month of January, well above economists’ forecast. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell unexpectedly to 8.3% in January.
The strong jobs report has boosted demand for riskier assets. At last check, the Dow Jones was trading 1.12% higher at 12,848.27, the S&P 500 was trading 1.27% higher at 1,342.38, and the Nasdaq was trading 1.47% higher at 2,901.70.
All sectors in the S&P 500 are in green in mid-day trading. Industrials are leading the gains in the S&P 500 in mid-day trading. At last check, Industrials were trading 2.02% higher. Consumer Cyclical stocks are currently trading 1.96% higher. Basic Materials stocks are up 0.86% currently, while Financials are up 1.75% currently. Energy stocks are currently trading 0.92% higher. Technology stocks are currently trading 1.45% higher. Transportation stocks are up 1.26%.
Among the major gainers in mid-day trading today are Zoltek Companies Inc. (
NASDAQ: ZOLT), which is currently trading 37.80% higher at $13.05, The Clorox Company (
NYSE: CLX), which is currently trading 1.28% higher at $69.61, Tyson Foods Inc. (
NYSE: TSN), which is currently trading 4.73% higher at $19.50, Gilead Sciences Inc. (
NASDAQ: GILD), which is currently trading 8.86% higher at $53.68, and Genworth Financial Inc. (
NYSE: GNW), which is currently trading 14.05% higher at $9.17.
Among the major losers in mid-day trading are The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL), which is currently trading 3.33% lower at $56.85, and Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IDIX), which is currently trading 11.30% lower at $11.70.
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