Roundup: U.S. stocks keep falling despite upbeat jobs data

U.S. stocks reversed early gains to end sharply lower Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite Index on a seven-session losing streak, as Wall Street digested a stronger-than-expected jobs report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 167.65 points, or 1.02 percent, to 16,346.45. The S&P 500 lost 21.06 points, or 1.08 percent, to 1,922.03. The Nasdaq decreased 45.79 points, or 0.98 percent, to 4,643.63.

U.S. total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 292,000 in December, well above market estimates of 200,000, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5 percent, said the U.S. Labor Department Friday.

In December, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls were little changed at 25.24 U.S. dollars, following an increase of 5 cents in November. Over the year, average hourly earnings have risen by 2.5 percent.

"A huge jobs gain in December was likely boosted by unusually clement weather. But from the Fed's perspective, it's vindication nonetheless of the decision to hike in December," said Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, in a note.

Overseas, China's shares showed signs of stabilization, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index moving up 1.97 percent Friday, after the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) announced that the stock market "circuit breaker" mechanism would be suspended.

European equities continued to decline Friday. Germany's benchmark DAX index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange dropped 1.31 percent, while Britain's benchmark FTSE 100 Index decreased 0.70 percent.

In a weekly basis, all three major indices posted steep losses, with the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq plummeting 6.2 percent, 6.0 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, increased 8.08 percent to end at 27.01 Friday.

In other markets, oil prices continued to fall as market expected the supply to surpass the demand.

The West Texas Intermediate for February delivery moved down 11 cents to settle at 33.16 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for February delivery decreased 20 cents to close at 33.55 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The U.S. dollar gained against most major currencies as newly-released data showed stronger-than-expected job growth in the U.S..

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.3 percent at 98.503 in late trading.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose as better-than-expected jobs data put pressure on the precious metal.

The most active gold contract for February delivery fell 9.9 dollars, or 0.89 percent, to settle at 1,097.90 dollars per ounce. Endit