NEW YORK - Major stock indexes pushed higher on Friday as data showed the US labour market is resilient despite uncertainty over President Donald Trump's tariffs, while upcoming US-China talks added to hopes of easing trade tensions.
Tesla stocks regained some ground after plunging on Thursday following a stunning public row between the company's billionaire boss Elon Musk and Trump.
A below-par reading on private hiring this week raised worries about the labour market and the outlook for the US economy ahead of a Labor Department jobs report, a key piece of data used by the Federal Reserve as it decides whether to adjust interest rates.
But the report showed hiring in the world's largest economy came in at 139,000 last month, above market expectations.
The figure indicates that the US employment market is relatively healthy despite the jolts to financial markets, supply chains and consumer sentiment this year as Trump announced successive waves of tariffs.
Wall Street mounted a strong comeback, and Paris and London stocks closed higher.
Frankfurt was near-flat after sentiment was knocked by the Bundesbank warning Germany could face two more years of recession if a trade war with the United States escalates sharply.
For now, however, the eurozone economy is showing signs of resilience, with official data Friday indicating it expanded at a significantly faster pace than previously estimated in the first three months of the year.
The EU's data agency said the 20-country single currency area recorded growth of 0.6 percent over the January-March period from the previous quarter, up from the 0.3-percent figure published last month.
Equity markets were also buoyed as Trump announced US officials would meet a Chinese team in London on Monday to discuss a "trade deal" on both sides.
Investors are hopeful that high-level engagements could bring an easing of tensions following Trump's "Liberation Day" global tariff blitz that hit Beijing particularly hard.