Stocks end mixed following jobs, services data

Investors hoping for some guidance from two key economic reports got very little. The Institute for Supply Management said its index of service sector activity fell to 48.2 from 51.7 in May; the reading touched off more misgivings about the well-being of the economy.

The look at the service sector followed a largely as-expected report from the Labor Department, which said the nation's unemployment rate held steady at 5.5 percent last month. The government also reported that 62,000 jobs were lost in June, but that number was close to economists' forecasts.

The jobs report did appear to assuage some worries that the snapshot of the labor market would be more grim. Employment numbers are critical because consumers who are out of work or are nervous about losing their job are likely to cut their spending. They've already become cautious because of higher food and energy prices.

Christopher Molumphy, chief investment officer at Franklin Templeton fixed income group, said the employment figures don't point to a labor market in distress. "We are not seeing data that would be consistent with recessionary conditions," he said.

Molumphy also said the session's somewhat skewed trading was typical of a shortened session ahead of a holiday. Trading ended three hours early at 1 p.m. Eastern time, and the market was closing Friday for the Fourth of July.

"We try not to overanalyze some of the moves because I think you can easily do that," he said.

The Dow rose 73.03, or 0.65 percent, to 11,288.54.

Broader stock indicators ended mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 1.38, or 0.11 percent, to 1,262.90, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 6.08, or 0.27 percent, to 2,245.38.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 3.19 billion shares.