Major Averages Close At Their Best Levels Of The Day

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday after fluctuating earlier in the session. The markets benefited from a positive reaction to the Labor Department's closely watched monthly employment report.

Banking stocks turned in some of the market's best performances on the day, resulting in a 2.6 percent gain by the KBW Bank Index. With the gain, the index reached its best closing level in almost five years.

Within the banking sector, KeyCorp (KEY), Zions Bancorp (ZION) and SunTrust Banks (STI) posted standout gains.

Considerable strength was also visible among brokerage stocks, as reflected by the 2.4 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Broker/Dealer Index. The index also reached a nearly five-year closing high.

Trucking, oil service, and biotechnology stocks also saw significant strength, moving to the upside along with most of the other major sectors.

Meanwhile, gold stocks moved sharply lower on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 3.5 percent. The weakness in the sector came as gold for August delivery plunged by $39.20 to $1,212.70 an ounce.

Housing stocks also came under pressure over the course of the session, resulting in a 1.7 percent drop by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

The major averages saw further upside going into the close, ending the session at their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 147.29 points or 1 percent to 15,135.84, the Nasdaq climbed 35.71 points or 1 percent to 3,479.38 and the S&P 500 rose 16.48 points or 1 percent to 1,631.89.

With the strong gains on the day, the major averages all moved higher for the holiday-interrupted week. The Nasdaq surged up by 2.2 percent, while the Dow and the S&P 500 advanced by 1.5 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively.