Wall Street opens higher following a stronger-than-expected report on the US job market

NEW YORK AP Stocks are opening higher on Wall Street following a stronger-than-expected assessment on the U S job sphere The S P climbed in early trading Friday putting the index on track for a ninth straight day of gains The Dow Jones Industrial Average added points or and the Nasdaq composite was up Employers added jobs in April more than forecast However the latest job figures don t yet reflect the effects on the business sector of President Donald Trump s across-the-board tariffs against America s trading partners Treasury yields rose in the bond sphere THIS IS A DEVELOPING NEWS UPDATE AP s earlier story follows below Wall Street was poised to open with gains Friday after China s Commerce Ministry mentioned Beijing is evaluating overtures from the U S regarding President Donald Trump s tariffs Futures for the S P gained before the bell and were on track for a ninth straight day of gains Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average added and Nasdaq futures ticked up Exxon Mobil s broadcasted its lowest first-quarter profit in years stung by weaker crude prices and higher costs Its shares ticked up less than before markets opened Friday Shares in rival Chevron fell more than after it also communicated its smallest first quarter profit in years A barrel of U S benchmark crude fell below this week a level at which a large number of producers can no longer turn a profit On Friday a barrel of U S crude fell another cents to Brent crude the European standard declined cents to per barrel Strength prices mostly have been in decline since Trump s inauguration in January with the cost of a barrel of oil sliding as much as At this time last year a barrel of U S crude cost Uncertainty about the impact of Trump s on-again-off-again tariff announcements has consumers and businesses feeling anxious about the future Rapidly falling oil prices signal pessimism about economic development and can be a harbinger of a recession as manufacturers cut production businesses cut tour costs and families rethink vacation plans Late Thursday tool behemoths Amazon and Apple communicated their latest results Shares of Apple fell about overnight after the iPhone company beat Wall Street expectations but forecast an additional million to its costs in the current quarter as a effect of the tariffs if they remain in place as communicated Amazon shares fell close to after the online retailer communicated better-than-expected results but also declared that tariffs were clouding its near-term forecast Friday the authorities distributed its April jobs document showing that American employers added a better-than-expected jobs Economists expected the U S Labor Department to analysis that employers added jobs last month That s a healthy number but it would be down sharply from the surprisingly strong jobs added in March Multiple economists worry the job field could deteriorate with Trump s massive taxes on imports to the U S likely to raise costs for Americans and American businesses which could product in slower economic improvement However hopes that Trump may eventually roll back particular of his tariffs after reaching exchange deals with other countries has helped to promotion markets this week On Thursday the S P rose for an eighth straight gain its longest winning streak since August In Europe at midday Germany s DAX advanced the CAC in Paris climbed and Britain s FTSE was In Asian trading Hong Kong s Hang Seng surged to while markets in Shanghai were closed for a populace holiday Taiwan s benchmark jumped An unnamed Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson was cited as saying that Beijing had taken note of various statements by senior U S administrators indicating a willingness to negotiate over tariffs At the same time the U S has just now taken the initiative to convey information to the Chinese side on a number of occasions through relevant parties hoping to talk with the Chinese side In this regard the Chinese side is making an assessment it noted Tokyo s Nikkei picked up to Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato drew attention by mentioning that the country s more than trillion in U S Treasury bonds could potentially be a card on the table in negotiations with Washington over Trump s steep tariffs on autos and other imports Elsewhere in Asia South Korea s Kospi rose to and Australia s S P ASX added closing at