Stocks post gains despite weak employment report

NEW YORK - A late rally gave Wall Street a modest advance Friday after a lackluster employment report left investors wondering about the pace of economic growth and inflation. The major indexes each gained more than 1 percent this week.

While October's job creation figures fell short of expectations, it signaled the economy is weathering the blows dealt by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The Labor Department said employers added 56,000 jobs last month, half the 100,000 increase projected.

Investors also focused on September's job loss, which was scaled back 27,000 jobs to just 8,000, suggesting the hurricanes' impact was less than feared. But a downward revision to August's figure indicated the job market might have been weaker than previously thought before the hurricanes struck, said Christopher Piros, the director of investment strategy for Prudential's Strategic Investment Research Group.

Mr. Piros also said that while payrolls have expanded by 48,000 from August to October, the growth came from a 52,000 rise in temporary employment and a 45,000 gain in construction jobs.

"Meanwhile, the rest of the economy has lost 49,000 jobs," Mr. Piros said. "That's not exactly a picture of strength."

At the close of trading Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 8.17, or 0.08 percent, to 10,530.76. Broader stock indicators were also higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up 0.20, or 0.02 percent, at 1,220.14, and the Nasdaq composite index added 9.21, or 0.43 percent, to 2,169.43.

Bonds extended their slide after falling to eight-month lows a day earlier, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note rising to 4.67 percent from 4.65 percent late Thursday. The dollar was mostly lower against most major currencies, while gold prices dipped.

Inflation worries were renewed when the Labor Department also that reported average hourly earnings grew 0.5 percent last month, ahead of estimates for a 0.2 percent gain. Higher wages benefit workers but could lead to increased prices as costs rise.

Stocks finished the week with sturdy gains as the third-quarter earnings season wound down and with few major economic reports expected next week. For the week, the Dow rose 1.23 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 1.81 percent and the Nasdaq jumped 3.81 percent.

Software maker Oracle Corp. said late Thursday that co-President and Chief Financial Officer Greg Maffei is leaving next week after just four months on the job, sparking concerns about the company's hiring practices. Oracle nonethless added 41 cents to $12.61.

Investors pulled back from Merck & Co. a day after news of the drugmaker's victory in the latest trial over its Vioxx painkiller lifted shares almost 4 percent. The company plans to fight the 7,000 cases that have been filed. Merck fell 26 cents to $29.22.