Stocks Rally on Jobs Growth, Trump’s Jab at Fed

U.S. stocks climbed toward all-time highs, the dollar strengthened and Treasury yields fell after a report showed the economy is adding jobs with few signs of inflation and President Donald Trump pressured the Federal Reserve to sustain growth.

“On the bigger picture, it looks like a very strong labor market is a good sign for the economy, but low inflation is also attractive for financial markets,” said John Vail, chief global strategist at Nikko Asset Management, which has around $202 billion in assets under management. “So it’s a bit of a Goldilocks situation.”

The S&P 500 index rose for a seventh consecutive day, the longest rally since 2017, and approached the record high reached in September. Global stocks edged higher earlier following remarks from both China and the U.S. that progress was being made in trade talks. The pound weakened after U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May asked the EU to delay Brexit to June 30

Payrolls rose by 196,000 in March, a Labor Department report showed. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey saw an increase of 177,000. Wage gains eased and the unemployment rate held near a 49-year low.

The S&P 500 Index rose 0.3 percent as of 11:01 a.m. New York time, while the Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.4 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.1 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.2 percent. The MSCI Emerging Market Index increased 0.4 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose less than 0.1 percent.