U.S. stocks wrapped up Friday's session to the upside, buoyed by a rally in oil prices and strong February payrolls. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.37% and 2.3% for the week. The S&P 500 gained 0.36% and 2.8% for the week. The Nasdaq added 0.23%, for a weekly gain of 2.84%. This is the third straight week of gains for stocks. The Dow is back above 17,000. The gains came on the heels of strong February payrolls, with the economy adding 242,000 jobs during the month, beating estimates by 52,000 jobs. Oil prices also rose. West Texas Intermediate advanced 4.7 percent, eclipsing $36 a barrel. Brent, the international price for crude, also rose 4.7 percent, trading shy of $39 a barrel. Not surprisingly, Chesapeake Energy (CHK) and Transocean (RIG) were the best performing stocks in the S&P 500 Friday. Meanwhile, Seadrill (SDRL) shares were in focus as investors cover short bets on hopes that the offshore driller's main owner may inject a significant amount of cash into the bruised company. Shares rose 121%. TheStreet’s Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.
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