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Wall Street mixed after jobs report while FTSE closes higher

FTSE  IMAGE DISTRIBUTED FOR U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION - A crowd of service members, veterans and military spouses speak with employers during the Washington State Service Member for Life Transition Summit job fair on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2014 at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The three-day summit is held in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes program, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Defense, Camo 2 Commerce, and the U.S. Army. Sponsored by Starbucks, Amazon, Call of Duty Endowment, First Data, Toyota, University of Phoenix, USAA and Verizon, the event is part of a series of collaborative efforts between the public and private sectors to connect veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses to meaningful employment opportunities. (Stephen Brashear/AP Images for U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation)
Wall Street and the FTSE moved in diferent directions amid the latest US jobs data. Photo:Stephen Brashear/AP Images (AP Images for U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation)

The FTSE 100 and European stocks finished mixed as traders digested the messages from the Bank of England and jobs data fuelled higher rate worries in Wall Street.

The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) bounced back and gained 0.97% to close at 7,876 points, while the CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris rose 0.64% to 7,212 points. In Germany, the DAX (^GDAXI) fell 0.35% to 15,454.

Across the pond, stocks were in the red after data showed the economy added jobs at a rapid pace last month, feeding into fears that the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates higher for longer in its fight against inflation.

The Dow Jones (^DJI) rose 0.21% to 34,124 points. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 0.10% to 4,175 points and the tech-heavy NASDAQ (^IXIC) was flat at 12,196.

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Mike Bell, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said: “The much stronger than expected job gains took US equity futures lower, this is evidence that the big risk to markets this year is not a recession but a labour market that remains robust.

Read more: Russians sending 'significant amounts of money' to help Ukraine via crypto

"This would mean the Fed cannot deliver the rate cuts that the market is pricing in.“Ultimately, we still expect unemployment to rise this year and think that equity markets should deliver positive returns as they look ahead to the Fed cutting rates and potential economic recovery in 2024. But today’s data show the risks of being overweight growth stocks if the labour market remains strong," he added.

Back in London, Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said yesterday’s optimism was specifically on “renewed hope we’ve reached peak inflation, which will cement central banks’ ability to pause interest rate hikes.”

British Gas owner Centrica (CNA.L) was one of the biggest fallers after it was revealed that debt collectors working for the energy provider broke into customers' homes to fit prepayment energy meters.

The industry regulator has asked energy companies to suspend the forced installation of prepayment meters. Ofgem also told suppliers to review the use of court warrants to enter the homes of customers in arrears.

Discount retailer B&M (BME.L) gained 2.45% and Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) rose 0.87% after Deutsche Bank upgraded their stocks to "buy" from "hold".

Read more: Interest rates: Bank of England's Bailey warns UK inflation still stubborn

Meanwhile, Brent crude (BZ=F) was trading at around $82/barrel as markets await for signs of China’s demand recovery.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 (^N225) closed higher, climbing 0.39% to 27,509 points, while the Hang Seng (^HSI) in Hong Kong lost 1.56% to 21,615. The Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) also retreated, losing 0.68% to 3,263 points.

Watch: Stocks open lower following blowout January jobs report

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