Wall Street wobbles after jobs report

Wall Street wobbled to a modestly higher finish overnight as a report showing robust US job growth failed to fully ease concerns about the problems facing the housing and finance sectors.

A day after a brutal sell-off, market action was volatile with swings in and out of positive territory as traders tried to gauge the impact of the latest reports.

At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 38.69 points (0.29 per cent) at 13,606.56.

The Nasdaq composite increased 15.55 points (0.56 per cent) at 2,810.38 and the Standard & Poor's 500 broad-market index added 2.20 points (0.15 per cent) to a preliminary close of 1,510.64.

The market action came a day after a punishing decline of more than 2 per cent for the main indexes amid growing concerns about the impact of the US housing and credit crisis on the financial sector. Other global stocks also showed sharp losses.

Another factor hurting the market was a growing belief that the Federal Reserve, which cut its base rate to 4.5 per cent this week, might be holding rates steady in view of the latest data.

Ahead of the market opening, the Government said US employers added 166,000 new jobs in October, defying most forecasts of weak growth and suggesting that the economy is weathering housing and credit market woes.

Earlier Britain's leading shares ended 0.8 per cent lower, with Barclays bearing the brunt of a renewed credit scare that pummelled financials and demoralised stock markets around the world.

The FTSE 100 index ended down 55.5 at 6,530.6 points. On Thursday the index suffered its biggest daily fall since the peak of the credit crisis in August.

Elsewhere, other major European stock indexes ended lower.

Banks took 37 points off the index. Barclays was the biggest percentage loser, tumbling 6 per cent on market talk it was approaching the Bank of England due to funding worries and concern the company would lower its outlook.

All stocks fell in the sector, with Royal Bank of Scotland down 4.7 per cent and Lloyds losing 2.5 per cent.

Miners also weighed on the FTSE 100, all ending lower as copper fell and investors locked in recent profits. Anglo American was the biggest percentage loser in the sector, falling 1.7 per cent. Pravda.ru

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