NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Wall Street stocks gained early Friday after the October US jobs report topped expectations despite a hit from the General Motors strike.

Employers added 128,000 net new jobs last month, the Labor Department reported, much better than the 80,000 projected by analysts and in spite of lower auto industry staffing that was apparent in data on that sector.

“The key takeaway from the report is that it is not emblematic of an economy that is on the brink of a recession,” analyst Patrick O’Hare wrote at Briefing.com. “On the contrary, it is emblematic of an economy that is expanding.”

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 27,197.07, up 0.6 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 also jumped 0.6 percent to 3,055.59, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.5 percent to 8,342.72.

Among companies reporting results, Exxon Mobil jumped 1.6 percent after reporting better-than-expected profits, while Chevron fell 1.0 percent on results that lagged expectations.

Fitbit, a wearable technology company, surged 16.3 percent after it agreed to be acquired by Google for $2.1 billion.

The move advances Google’s expansion into hardware while Fitbit has struggled against rivals including Apple. Alphabet climbed 0.4 percent.

© Agence France-Presse