This morning's employment report from the Department of Labor showed a more robust-than-expected gain of non-farm payrolls, with 243,000 jobs added. Investors expected the report to show around 150,000 non-farm payrolls added. The unemployment rate declined to 8.3%, from 8.5% the previous month.

Job growth was widespread in the private sector, with large employment gains in professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and manufacturing, states the report. Government employment changed little over the month.

Juli says: The job market still has a long ways to go to fully recover from the financial crisis, but better-than-expected job growth and a decline in unemployment should help support financial markets this morning.

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