U.S. Stocks Little Changed Near All-Time High After Payroll Data

---

U.S. stocks were little changed, after the Standard & Poor™s 500 Index reached an all-time high, as data showed companies added to payrolls last month.

The S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to 1,886.76 at 9:30 a.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 5.85 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 16,526.76. The gauge ended yesterday 44 points below its record closing level set Dec. 31.

The S&P 500 rose 0.7 percent yesterday to cap a third day of gains, the longest streak since February, as consumer and technology stocks pushed the gauge to a record and an index of manufacturing boosted optimism the economy withstood severe winter weather.

Data today showed companies in the U.S. boosted payrolls by 191,000 in March, according to figures from the ADP Research Institute in Roseland, New Jersey. The median forecast of 38 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 195,000 advance.

The government™s monthly jobs report for March is due April 4.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said last week that œconsiderable slack in the labor market is evidence that the central bank™s unprecedented accommodation will be needed for œsome time to put Americans back to work.

Copy Source : Bloomberg