Stocks rose on Friday as Wall Street digested a better-than-expected nonfarm payrolls report for April, putting the S&P 500 on pace for its longest winning streak in just over two decades.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.7%, a move that put the broad market index on track for its ninth consecutive day of gains. If the index closes higher, that would mark its longest winning streak since November 2004. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 421 points, or 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9%.

Payrolls grew by 177,000 last month, above the 133,000 that economists polled by Dow Jones had anticipated. That figure is still down sharply from the 228,000 added in March. The unemployment rate stood at 4.2%, in line with expectations.

The payrolls report is the latest in a blast of economic data this week, with a gross domestic product reading that showed the economy contracted 0.3% at an annualized pace in the first quarter. Private payrolls data from ADP likewise came in weak, and the latest weekly jobless claims ballooned to 241,000, higher than expected.

“Markets breathed a sigh of relief this morning as the jobs data came in better than expected. While recession fears are still simmering on the back burner, the buy-the-dip dynamic can continue – at least until the tariff pause runs out,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management. “We’ve already seen how financial markets will react if the administration moves forward with their initial tariff plan, so unless they take a different tack in July when the 90-day pause expires, we will see market action similar to the first week of April.”

Investors were already upbeat prior to the strong jobs report after China said that it is evaluating the possibility of starting trade negotiations with the U.S. Still, Chinese authorities reaffirmed that the U.S. should remove all unilateral tariffs, saying that “if the U.S. wants to talk, it should show its sincerity and be prepared to correct its wrong practices and cancel the unilateral tariffs,” according to the statement.

The Street was also mulling over earnings reports from two “Magnificent Seven” members. Apple slid nearly 3% in premarket trading after posting fiscal second-quarter revenue from its Services division that fell short against analyst estimates. Additionally, the iPhone maker said it expects to add $900 million in costs in the current quarter due to tariffs. Amazon, meanwhile, rose 1% after its first-quarter results came in better than expected. The company issued light guidance, however, highlighting “tariffs and trade policies” as factors.

The moves come after the major averages rose to kick off May, with the tech sector catching a tailwind after results from Meta Platforms and Microsoft helped revive the artificial intelligence trade. The 30-stock Dow added 0.2%, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.6%. Both indexes posted eight-day win streaks. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.5% and wiped out its losses since April 2, the day of President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs announcement. 

Nearly two-thirds of the S&P 500 constituents have announced their results, with 76% posting earnings that have surpassed estimates, according to data from FactSet.

Thus far, all three major averages are on pace for their second winning week in a row. The S&P 500 is on pace to rise 1.4% this week, while the Dow is on track for a 1.6% advance. The Nasdaq is up 1.9% week to date.