US stocks open higher after strong jobs report, Dow Jones hits new record

The main US stock indices rose on Monday, as Dow Jones hit a new record high following the strong monthly jobs report.

The US stock and bond markets were closed on Friday in observance of the Good Friday holiday, with some stock markets in several European and Asian countries continuing to close today due to the Easter holiday.

The US Department of Labor revealed that the economy has added 916K new jobs, the largest monthly increase since August, beating forecasts of 652K jobs.

The unemployment rate fell to 6%, in line with forecasts, and better than the previous reading of 6.2%. 

As for stocks, Dow Jones rose 0.8% or 268 points to 33,421 as of 14:03 GMT, Nasdaq rose 1.1% or 152 points to 13,632, and S&P 500 rose 0.9% or 38 points to 4,057.