Wall Street adds to gains despite disappointing NFP figures

• Falling crude oil prices weigh on energy shares.
• Technology continues to outperform other sectors.
• Nonfarm employment growth falls short of expectations.

Although the employment report showed that job growth in the United States lost momentum in December, major equity indexes extended their gains to reach new all-time highs on Friday.

The data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics today showed that nonfarm employment rose by 148K in December, missing the experts' expectation of 190K. The report also revealed that the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.1% and the wage inflation increased by 0.3% on a monthly basis.

Commenting on the data, “the market is shrugging it off because it’s not weak enough to detract the Fed from raising rates further. The modest rise in average hourly wage number should give the Fed some breathing room,” Bryce Doty, senior portfolio manager, SIT Fixed Income Advisors LLC, Minneapolis, told Reuters.

As crude oil prices retreated from their two and a half year highs on Friday, the S&P 500 Energy Sector (SPNY) failed to take advantage of the positive mood surrounding the equity indices and was headed to finish the day 0.15% lower. Even after the Baker Hughes' weekly report showed that the total number of active oil rigs in the U.S. declined by five, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate settled at $61.50, down 0.8% on the day.

On the other hand, the S&P 500 Information Technology Sector (SPLRCT), last year's top performing sector, preserved its bullish momentum and added another 1% on Friday as the positive sentiment kept the demand for risk-sensitive technology shares strong.

A few minutes ahead of the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was adding 152.45 points, or 0.61%, at 25,075.13, the S&P 500 was up 11.79 points, or 0.43%, at 2,724.85 and the Nasdaq Composite was gaining 50.28 points, or 0.71%, at 7,128.19.