U.S. stocks closed higher Friday, as investors embraced a stronger-than-forecast November payrolls report. In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department reported that employers created 321,000 jobs last month, the largest gain since January 2012, and topped estimates. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at a six-year low of 5.8 percent, while hourly earnings increased 0.4 percent. Another report had orders for factory goods falling 0.7 percent in October. The dollar rose against the currencies of major U.S. trading partners, hitting a seven-year high against the Japanese yen. Light sweet crude oil for January delivery fell 97 cents to a five-year low of $65.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures dropped $17.30 to $1,190.40 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 58.69, or 0.33 percent, to 17,958.79. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 3.45, or 0.17 percent, to 2,075.37. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index added 11.32, or 0.24 percent, to 4,780.76.
