By DAVID K. RANDALL, AP Business Writer 

NEW YORK – Job growth in the U.S. and signs of global manufacturing expansion sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday. Bond prices and the dollar fell as investors moved money into riskier assets.

 

European stocks got a boost after European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet suggested that the bank could buy bonds issued by struggling countries within the European Union. That, along with a better-than-expected bond auction by Portugal, pushed the euro higher. The Euro Stoxx 50, which tracks blue chip companies in Europe, rose 2 percent.

 

The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 230 points in midday trading.

 

All 30 stocks in the Dow index rose. Home Depot Inc. and United Technologies Corp. and Microsoft Corp. each rose more than 3 percent. All 10 industry groups that make up the Standard and Poor’s 500 index rose, led by energy, industrial and technology companies.

 

ADP Employer Services, a payroll company, said small businesses added the largest amount of workers in three years, well ahead of what analysts had forecast.

 

“The U.S. economy is all about jobs and anything that leads folks to believe that there’s a better job market will be good for equities,” said Paul Zemsky, the head of asset allocation at ING Investment Management.

 

Bond prices fell sharply, pushing their yields higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond rose to 2.92 percent from 2.80 percent late Tuesday. That yield is a widely used benchmark for loans including mortgages.

 

In other economic news, the Institute of Supply Management said its index of manufacturing activity rose in November for the 16th month.

 

Stocks rose in Asia after reports signaled that the Chinese economy is growing. A Chinese state index of manufacturing activity rose to 55.2 in November from 54.7 in October. Any number above 50 indicates economic expansion. Monthly readings have stayed above that number for 21 straight months. A competing Chinese survey by HSBC rose to an eight-month high.

 

Hong Kong‘s Hang Seng rose 1.1 percent. China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1 percent. Stocks have fallen in Asia since early November after China raised a key interest rate to combat inflation.

 

The Federal Reserve will put out its report on regional economic activity later in the day.

 

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 238.82, or 2.2 percent, to 11,244.84 in midday trading. The S&P 500 rose 25.63, or 2.2 percent, to 1,206.18. The Nasdaq composite rose 57.58, or 2.3 percent, to 2,555.81.

Source: Associated Press