U.S. stocks jumped after the unemployment rate decreased for the first time since April 2008, bolstering speculation that a recovering economy justifies the steepest rally in equities in seven decades. The dollar advanced and Treasuries capped their biggest weekly drop in six years.

American Express Co., Walt Disney Co. and General Electric Co. added at least 2.7 percent after the Labor Department said the nation lost 247,000 jobs last month, 78,000 fewer than economists projected, and the jobless rate fell to 9.4 percent from 9.5 percent. American International Group Inc. rallied 20 percent after its first profit since 2007 topped estimates. CBS Corp. and D.R. Horton Inc. climbed on analyst upgrades.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 1.3 percent to a 10- month high of 1,010.48 at 4:08 p.m. in New York, completing a fourth straight weekly advance. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 113.81 points, or 1.2 percent, to 9,370.07.

The S&P 500 has rallied 49 percent from a 12-year low on March 9, the steepest surge since the Great Depression. The market’s rebound restored almost $4 trillion in value to U.S. equities, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, after 2008 marked the worst year for stocks since the 1930s. Reports this month showed better-than-estimated sales of cars and pending contracts to buy existing homes, while service industries contracted less than economists forecast.

(Bloomberg.com)