By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. stock market moved slightly higher on Friday following an upbeat jobs report, setting up indexes to post weekly gains.

The U.S. economy added 288,000 jobs in April, while the unemployment rate fell to 6.3%. However, the details of the report had puzzling aspects, such as a sharp drop in the labor participation rate and stagnant wage growth.

The S&P 500 (SPX) added 3 points, or 0.2%, to 1,886.62, hovering near record closing level. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 22 points, or 01%, to 16,580, also trading near record levels.

The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) was flat at 4,126.33.

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"The headline number was much better than expected, confirming that a harsh winter slowed the economy down. But in the end, the solid gains in jobs growth did not matter, as an improvement was already priced in," said Kate Warne, investment strategist at Edward Jones.

"The economy is improving, but not fast enough for the Fed to change long-term policy. It looks like there are no changes in the long-term view in bond markets either," she added.

The U.S. generated 288,000 jobs in April -- the biggest increase in more than two years -- and the unemployment rate fell to 6.3%, a strong performance that suggests the economy is accelerating after tepid first-quarter growth. The unemployment rate is the lowest since September 2008.

Data released Thursday showed jobless claims for last week jumped to the highest level since February, falling short of Wall Street estimates. Both the Dow average (DJI) and the S&P 500 (SPX) ended lower after a choppy trading day.

After the data, the dollar (DXY) jumped against the Japanese yen to above Yen103. U.S. 10-year Treasury yield rose 8bps to 2.68%, while gold prices fell.

A report on U.S. factory orders is scheduled to be released at 10 a.m. Eastern Time.

On the corporate side, shares of LinkedIn Corp. (LNKD) dropped 3.4% after the online networking service said late Thursday it swung to a loss of $13.32 million, or 11 cents a share, in the first quarter from a profit of $22.6 million, or 20 cents a share, a year ago.

Expedia Inc. (EXPE) dropped 4% after the travel site late Thursday said its first-quarter loss narrowed to $14.3 million.

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) slipped 1.2% after reports German drug maker Bayer AG is in exclusive talks to buy Merck's consumer-healthcare unit for $14 billion.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) shares rose 3.7%. The company said late Thursday its first-quarter adjusted earnings rose to $2.32 a share from $2.03 a share as net revenue increased 9.8% to $1.51 billion. The casino operator's results topped analyst expectations.

Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) shares rose 3%. The company reported late Thursday its first-quarter adjusted earnings rose to 58 cents from 51 cents on revenue that jumped 23% to $454 million, beating expectations.

U.S.-listed shares of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) jumped 8.7%. The bank said Friday its first-quarter profit rose, as it attempts to reduce costs by focusing on its U.K. operations.

InvenSense Inc. (INVN) shares dropped 5.3%. The company said late Thursday it swung to a fiscal fourth-quarter loss of $5.6 million, or 6 cents a share, from a year-earlier profit of $13.6 million, or 15 cents a share. Net revenue rose to $59.0 million from $55.2 million.

In other financial markets, European stock markets wobbled around the flat line, while Asian bourses closed mixed. Gold (GCM4) prices came under pressure after the jobs report and oil prices (CLM4) almost reclaimed the $100-a-barrel level.

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