AlHijjah 18, 1436, October 2, 2015, SPA -- U.S. stocks closed more than 1 percent higher Friday as investors digested higher oil prices and a weaker-than-expected jobs report. In U.S. economic news, the September jobs report showed that the economy created 142,000 jobs, a number far below the expected 203,000. August and July figures were also revised lower. Unemployment held at 5.1 percent. The participation rate plunged to 62.4 percent. Average hourly wages fell by a cent to $25.09 during the month and were up only 2.2 percent from the same month in 2014, pointing to marginal inflationary pressure. August factory orders showed a decline of 1.7 percent, the largest drop in eight months. In international economic news, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed about half a percent higher after dipping into negative territory as investors digested the U.S. jobs report. Japan's Nikkei finished just 0.02 percent higher while Hong Kong's Hang Seng surged 3.17 percent. Markets in mainland China remained closed for the National Day holiday, which lasts one week. The dollar fell 0.3 percent against major world currencies. Light sweet crude oil for November delivery gained 80 cents to $45.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while gold futures added $2.90 to $1,136.60 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 157, or 0.97 percent, to 16,431. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index climbed 22, or 1.15 percent, to 1,945. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index increased 67, or 1.44 percent, to 4,693. -- SPA 01:10 LOCAL TIME 22:10 GMT تغريد
