The major decliners on BSE were led by Tata Motors with a plung of 1.83% to Rs 813.90, Hindalco, which fell 1.24 % to Rs 186.80, TCS down 1.12 % to Rs 1,068, Hindustan Lever off 0.95 % to Rs 235.30 and ITC declining 0.77 % to Rs 187.15.


9:45AM Market opened higher on strong employment data.
Stronger-than-expected employment data in October pushed stocks higher at opening, easing concerns about the fast pace of the slowing U.S. economy. The Labor Department said that the economy added 92,000 and the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to a five-year low of 4.4%. The market also benefited from some early strength among energy stocks, which moved back to the upside together with the price of oil.

Economically sensitive shares such as Boeing (BA: chart) and United Technologies Corp. (UTX: chart) advanced 1.2% and 0.7% respectively. Shares of Electronic Arts (ERTS: chart) lifted the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 after the world''s largest video game publisher posted higher-than-expected quarterly revenue. Company''s shares jumped 10%. Whole Foods (WMFI: chart) dropped 21% on sales warning. In corporate news, Stellenet (STEL: chart) shares surged 26% after Oracle (ORCL: chart) agreed to buy the company for $440 million, or $13.50 a share, a 27% premium to its closing price.

In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 26.97, or 0.22%, to 12,045.51 after its first five-day decline since June 2005. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was up 2.94, or 0.22%, to 1,370.28, and the Nasdaq composite index advanced 5.01, or 0.21%, to 2,339.03. Treasurys tumbled, sending yields higher, after the October jobs report showed a strong U.S. labor market.The benchmark 10-year note was down 31/32 at 101 6/32. Its yield, which moves in the opposite direction to price, rose to 4.720% from 4.596% late Thursday.


9:30AM The FTSE 100 held firm Friday buoyed by US employment data.
In mid-session trade the FTSE 100 in London was 0.2% higher at 6,164.2, an increase of 15 points.

Advancers

BSkyB gained in view of its first quarter numbers. News of strong demand for its new broadband offering provided upside, as did strong subscriber growth taking its customer base over 8 million.

British Energy continued to recover, as the sharp sell-off following news of problems with the infrastructure of its generators left it looking undervalued. Shares in the company were up 1.8%.

AstraZeneca was stable despite a report that major shareholders are demanding that executives at the pharmaceuticals group spend $4 billion to rebuild its weak pipeline of new drugs with new acquisitions.

Decliners

British Airways fell 0.9% following its interim numbers. The airline stated that the summer security alert at UK airports cost the company around 100 million pounds.

Rexam, the packaging maker, were 3.6% weaker after it warned of a 10 million pounds restructuring charge after lower than forecast orders from the cosmetics sector.

Shares in St Ives fell 2.6% after Tangent Communications said it was no longer interested in bidding for the specialist printer.


9:00AM Stock futures pushed up on strong jobs data
U.S. stock market futures recovered from earlier uncertainty to turn higher Friday, boosted by stronger-than-expected payrolls data which showed that the labor market was on firmer footing than expected. The Labor Department reported that Although U.S. nonfarm payrolls grew by a lower-than-expected 92,000 in October, while unemployment rate fell to a five-year low of 4.4%.Economists had been expecting payroll growth of about 123,000, while the jobless rate was expected to remain at 4.6%.

In earnings news, wireless technologies giant Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM: chart) reported Q4 earnings and revenue that rose above year-earlier levels. For Q1, the company projected revenue of $1.98 billion to $2.08 billion, vs. the average estimate of $2.07 billion. Whole Foods (WFMI: chart) tumbled 20% in pre-open trading after warning that next-year revenue growth will come in between 6% and 8%, down from 11% this year. Shares of Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (RRGB: chart) plunged 26% after it cut its full-year earnings and revenue outlook. Red Hat (RHAT: chart) shares dropped 2.1% on continuous pressure from the Microsoft-Novell partnership announced late Thursday. On the deal news front, Oracle (ORCL: chart) announced it agreed to buy Stellent (STEL: chart) for $440 million, or $13.50 a share, a 27% premium to its closing price. Stellent shares soared 26% in pre-open trading. S&P 500 futures rose 3.00 points at 1,374.30 and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 4.00 points at 1,720.50. Dow industrial futures advanced 24 points at 12,060.

Non-farm payrolls data rose by 92,000 in October.
Friday morning, the Department of Labor released its report on the employment situation in the month of October, showing that the U.S. economy added fewer than expected jobs. At the same time, there was a significant upward revision to September employment growth. The report showed that non-farm payrolls rose by 92,000 in October following an upwardly revised increase of 148,000 jobs in September. Economists had expected an increase of 125,000 jobs compared to the increase of 51,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month. The Labor Department said that the October job growth reflected continued growth in several service-providing industries, although it noted that employment declined in the manufacturing and construction sectors. The report showed that service producing industries added 152,000 jobs in October, reflecting notable growth in professional and business service jobs. The education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and government sectors also added jobs, while retailers lost 3,000 jobs.

The increase in service producing jobs was partly offset by a decrease of 6,000 jobs in goods-producing industries. The manufacturing sector lost 39,000 jobs while the construction sector lost 26,000 jobs. The Labor Department added that the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to a five-year low of 4.4 percent in October from 4.6 percent in September. Economists had been expecting the unemployment rate to come in unchanged. The report also showed that average hourly earnings rose 0.4 percent in October to $16.91, while average weekly earnings rose 0.7 percent to $573.25. On an annual basis, average hourly earnings were up 3.9 percent and average weekly earnings were up 4.2 percent.