US Stocks Plunge on Strong NFP Report

The US stock markets ended the final trading session of the week in the red on Friday. The Standard and Poor's 500 fell 29.30 points to close at 7,718.41, a decline of 0.38 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted the steepest losses among the major US averages, dropping 272.51 points to finish at 53,413.60, a fall of 0.51 percent.

The strong non-farm payrolls report reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates elevated for longer, overshadowing earlier optimism from corporate earnings.