The addition of 103,000 jobs in September boosted investor sentiment to lift the markets to a sharply higher close with the Dow jumping 178 points to 11,836. Nasdaq surged 33 points to 2639.
On the upside
Shares of Leap Wireless (Nasdaq: LEAP) and MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS) rose after the House of Representatives froze state and local taxes on cellphones and wireless services for five years.
Third quarter earnings for Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD) more than tripled to surpass analyst expectations by a wide margin as revenue surged.
Shares of Forest Oil (NYSE: FST) continued rising after reporting upbeat third quarter results and completing the spinoff of Lone Pine Resources.
On the downside
Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE: LYG) chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio will take a medical leave of absence.
Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE: BDX) reported higher fourth quarter earnings and revenue but the company forecast 2012 results below estimates.
TRW Automotive (NYSE: TRW) disappointed with lower third quarter earnings as expenses rose.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 9 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 2 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks leaped 19 points to 733.