Dow Jones Industrial Average Rebounds After December Jobs Report Shows Robust Growth

This story was updated at 11:55 a.m. EST.

U.S. stocks were down slightly mid-session Friday, having given up an early rally that was driven by a better-than-expected jobs report. Chinese stocks recovered, and oil prices moved off multiyear lows.

Nonfarm payrolls surged by 292,000 in December, and the unemployment rate held steady at 5 percent. October and November payrolls were revised to show 50,000 more jobs created than previously reported, according to Friday's report. The upbeat report suggests that a recent manufacturing-led slowdown in economic growth would be temporary.

The Dow Jones industrial average was lately down 29 points, or 0.2 percent, having mounted a triple-digit rally earlier in the session. The broader S&P 500 index was down 4 points, or 0.2 percent. The tech-rich Nasdaq composite index was lately off 8 points, or 0.2 percent.

Friday’s early rally capped a week of volatility in the markets, roiled by the fallout from China’s attempts to manage its massive economy and currency devaluations. The Dow is now some 10 percent below last year’s record high.

Before Friday, the Dow had lost 5.2 percent since the end of 2015 in the worst first four trading days since the 30-stock index's creation several decades ago.

Oil prices rose modestly Friday, boosted by the recovery in Chinese shares, but remained within reach of 11-1/2-year lows.

Calm returned to overseas markets overnight. Chinese stocks rebounded, helping to calm bourses across Asia, while European markets were broadly higher Friday, providing hope that the panic-fueled week may yet end on a positive note.

Intense volatility in the global markets this week is estimated to have wiped out over $2 trillion of shareholders' value across the globe.

In company news:

Shares of Qorvo were down 4.2 percent at $43.70, a day after the Apple supplier cut its revenue estimate for the third quarter.

Gap was down 11.6 percent to $23.64 after the apparel retailer reported a larger-than-expected drop in December same-store sales.

Container Store slumped 39.8 percent to $4.32, a day after storage products retailer's fourth-quarter profit forecast missed estimates.

Reuters contributed to this report.