US stocks end mixed after strong jobs data

Wall Street stocks were mixed at the end of Friday's session as markets assessed the implications of a solid jobs report for US monetary policy.

The world's biggest economy added 263,000 jobs in November, more than anticipated, while the unemployment rate remained at 3.7 per cent, Labour Department data showed.

Government figures also indicated a bigger jump in hourly wages than analysts had benchmarked.

Stocks initially tumbled on the release as markets feared it would extend the period of ultra-aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate hikes to counter inflation.

But markets recovered throughout the day, lifting the Dow Jones Industrial Average narrowly into positive territory to close at 34,429.88, up 0.1 per cent.

The broad-based S&P 500 slipped 0.1 per cent to 4,071.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.2 per cent at 11,461.50.