US stock rally reaches new Highs on stimulus optimism

New York: US stocks climbed to all-time highs and Treasury yields jumped after a report showing US employment gains slowed in November bolstered expectations for more federal stimulus.

All major indexes for U.S. equities - the S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Russell 2000 and the Nasdaq Composite Index - surpassed their previous closing records. Such synchronized highs were last seen in January 2018. The dollar headed for its biggest weekly decline in five, while the yield on the 10-year Treasury note reached the highest in nine months.

"One of the recurring themes this year is the resiliency of the market, it's been amazing and impressive," said John Porter, head of equities at Mellon Investments.

Labor Department figures showed nonfarm payrolls increased by a less-than-forecast 245,000 from the prior month, as the unemployment rate dipped 0.2 percentage point to 6.7 per cent.

Energy companies led the Stoxx Europe 600 index higher. The euro strengthened for a fourth day after data signaled the German economy's resilience to the coronavirus pandemic.

Global equities remain around record highs as investors bet positive vaccine developments can help sustain an economic recovery next year.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said there's momentum building toward a compromise fiscal stimulus plan, though Republicans complained about the scale of aid to states included in the bipartisan proposal that's become the best chance yet for a deal.

"The market is betting that we'll get a relief package soon," said Matt Maley, chief market strategist at Miller Tabak + Co. "If anything, this weaker report will get them to agree on a package sooner rather than later."

Elsewhere, oil climbed as OPEC+ reached an agreement to ease its output cuts next year more gradually than previously planned. The Pentagon added four more Chinese companies - including China National Offshore Oil Corp. - to a list of firms it says are owned or controlled by the country's military, exposing them to increased scrutiny and potential sanctions by the U.S