* Dollar boosted by positive surprise in U.S. jobs data
* Global stocks hold on to recent gains
* U.S. crude extends rise on jobs data in choppy trade
* Bond prices fall after rise in Oct U.S. payrolls
(Updates to U.S. markets close)
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, Nov 5 (Reuters) - The dollar soared and stocks
posted modest gains on Friday after better-than-expected U.S.
jobs data fueled hopes of faster economic recovery.
News that nonfarm payrolls rose by 151,000 in October --
more than double the expected increase -- supported the gains
seen in stock markets during the past two sessions, after the
Federal Reserve announced a second round of monetary stimulus.
Nikkei futures traded in Chicago <NKZ0> were up 115 points
to 9,600 points.
The U.S. dollar rallied against the euro and yen on the
jobs data, which showed private companies hired workers at the
fastest pace since April. For details see: []
The dollar rose versus a basket of major currencies, with
the U.S. Dollar Index <.DXY> up 0.96 percent.
Crude oil hit a two-year high above $87 a barrel before
turning lower while gold hit a fresh record above $1,397 an
ounce, also before paring its gains. Investors bought gold on
fears the Fed's move announced Wednesday to buy more government
bonds will spur inflation and weaken the dollar going forward.
The strong U.S. labor report helped copper flirt with
record highs as it raised confidence in the prospects for
increased demand in the world's largest economy.
Analysts had forecast a gain of 60,000 jobs in October,
according to a Reuters poll. But the U.S. unemployment rate
remained unchanged from the previous month at 9.6 percent, a
reminder that stronger jobs growth was needed.
"It's both better than people had been looking for, and
it's another nail in the coffin of a double dip," said Nigel
Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington,
Massachusetts, referring to fears the economy would slide back
into recession.
However, the data was "still within the realm of a moderate
recovery," Gault said, a view that seemed to be reflected on
Wall Street, where markets hovered near break-even, in contrast
to better gains in Europe and elsewhere.
MSCI's all-country world stock index <.MIWD00000PUS> rose
0.15 percent while the FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of
leading European shares advanced 0.38 percent to 1,111.28.
Miners ranked among Europe's best performers as metal
prices rallied sharply, with Shanghai zinc jumping 5 percent
and London copper rising to fresh 27-month highs, within $200
of a fresh record. Copper <CMCU3> rose to $8,655.00 per tonne.
U.S. stocks hovered near break-even as investors mulled a
recent advance that had pushed the benchmark Dow Industrials
and S&P 500 to their highest levels since September 2008, when
markets posted their deepest slide since World War II.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> closed up 9.24
points, or 0.08 percent, to 11,444.08, while the Standard &
Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 4.79 points, or 0.39 percent, to
1,225.85. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> edged up 1.64
points, or 0.06 percent, to 2,578.98.
"Markets got a little boost from the jobs report, but the
strengthening dollar is offsetting. In addition, the markets
have been up all week and may be running into a little
profit-taking," said Tom Bentz, broker at BNP Paribas Commodity
Futures Inc in New York.
Markets jumped earlier in the week on the Fed's decision to
pump an additional $600 billion into the U.S. economy through
government bond purchases in hopes of pushing interest rates
down further and stimulating demand.
While the jobs report will help bolster so-called risk
markets and push oil prices higher, investors want to see
sustainable gains in unemployment, said Mohamed El-Erian, who
helps oversee more than $1.1 trillion as co-chief investment
officer at Pacific Investment Management Co, or PIMCO.
"The longer-term impact will depend on the strength of the
all-important hand-off to permanent sources of employment
growth," El-Erian said.
Spot gold <XAU=> hit a fresh record of $1,397.80 an ounce,
before paring much of that gain. Gold was up $1.10 at
$1,393.30.
U.S. crude futures <CLc1> rose 36 cents to $86.85 a barrel,
having touched $87.22 earlier, the highest intraday price since
October 2008.
The euro <EUR=> was down 1.20 percent at $1.4027. Against
the Japanese yen, the dollar <JPY=> was up 0.67 percent at
81.25.
U.S. Treasury debt prices fell, driving the 30-year bond's
yield to its highest level since June, as the jobs data erased
the safe-haven appeal of government debt. []
The 30-year U.S. Treasury bond <US30YT=RR> slid 1 point in
price to yield 4.123 percent. The benchmark 10-year U.S.
Treasury note <US10YT=RR> fell 14/32 in price to yield 2.5394
percent.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos, Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss,
Jennifer Ablan and Ellen Freilich in New York, Ikuko Kurahone,
Brian Gorman Dominic Lau in London; Writing by Herbert Lash;
Editing by Jan Paschal and Andrew Hay)
