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4. NY share prices at highest level in years
A drop in the unemployment rate to its lowest level in three years propelled US stocks higher on Friday.
The benchmark index posted the highest close in 3 years and 9 months.
On the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, buy orders were placed on a wide range of issues after the latest data showed that unemployment dropped to 8.3 percent in January, down 0.2 points from the figure for the previous month.
Before the market opened, the Labor Department reported that companies hired 243,000 employees in January. That's the strongest job growth in nine months.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 156 points from Thursday's close to 12,862, the highest since May 2008.
The high-tech-heavy NASDAQ index also rose to 2,905, the highest level since December 2000.
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