Dow rises 100 points despite disappointing U.S. jobs report - CNBC

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Stocks rose slightly on Friday as traders pored through the latest U.S. jobs report, putting the major averages on pace for another weekly advance.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded higher by 115 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 gained 0.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4%.

The U.S. economy added 245,000 jobs in November. That's well below a Dow Jones consensus estimate of 440,000. The unemployment rate, however, matched expectations by falling to 6.7% from 6.9%.

JJ Kinahan, chief market strategist at TD Ameritrade, noted the report "was not as bad as it seems" in part because a chunk of the lost jobs came from the U.S. government as the 2020 Census count wrapped up.

Kinahan also noted "it's really hard to estimate what these numbers are going to be when states are going from being completely shut down to being completely open. I think you're seeing that in the market's reaction."

Brad McMillan, CIO for Commonwealth Financial Network, also pointed out that average hours worked "remained strong" last month, "suggesting that overall labor demand remains healthy, and the drop in the unemployment rates suggests the labor market continues to tighten."

Friday's report comes as the number of coronavirus cases has been rising sharply. The U.S. reported record numbers on Thursday of new infections, single-day deaths and hospitalizations.

On Thursday, the stock market was hit by a report suggesting troubles with Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine rollout. Major averages swiftly fell to their session lows after Dow Jones reported said Pfizer expects to ship half of the Covid-19 vaccines it originally planned for this year due to supply-chain problems.

Still, Pfizer and BioNtech are on track to roll out 1.3 billion vaccines in 2021 and the 50 million dose shortfall this year will be covered as production ramps up, the report said.

The major averages were on pace to post their fourth weekly gain in five weeks. Entering Friday's session, the Dow was up 0.2%, and the S&P 500 had gained 0.8%. The Nasdaq had risen 1.4% this week through Thursday's close.

Elsewhere, investors closely monitored progress toward a stimulus deal as lawmakers make a strong push to break a stalemate over how to boost an economy that continues to be hurt by the pandemic. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke on the phone Thursday for the first time since at least the presidential election. Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer backed a bipartisan $908 billion stimulus package, while McConnell released his own roughly $500 billion plan.

Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist at Allianz Investment Management, said Friday's jobs report data "is beckoning lawmakers to act on additional fiscal stimulus measures in order to bridge the output gap in the economy until a vaccine is deployed and the longer they hold out the wider the gap may become."

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Dow rises 100 points despite disappointing U.S. jobs report - CNBC
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