US economy emerging with positive data from services sector

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US economy emerging with positive data from services sector

Jan 06,2011

US stocks gained ground Wednesday amid some better-than-expected reports on unemployment and the services industry in the US that gave hopes to investors of a more robust recovery in the new year.

Private group ADP Employer Services said the economy added 297,000 jobs in December, an upbeat prediction ahead of the Labour Department's own monthly estimate, due Friday.

The US jobless rate is currently at 9.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management, another private group, said its index of non-manufacturing sectors climbed higher than predicted to 57.1 in December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 31.71 points, or 0.27 percent, to 11,722.89. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 6.36 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,276.56. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 20.95 points, or 0.78 percent, to 2,702.2.

The US currency rose against the euro to 76.04 euro cents from 75.16 euro cents Tuesday. The dollar climbed against the Japanese currency to 83.26 yen from 82.02 yen.

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