Job creation in the US last month was higher than expected and the unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest in four years.
The latest US non-farm payrolls show that 165,000 jobs were created in April. Economists had been predicting a figure closer to 145,000.
The unemployment rate, at 7.5%, is now at its lowest level in four years.
The figures provided a boost to the markets, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumping above the 15,000 level for the first time in history, before slipping back slightly.
The drop in the unemployment rate reflected an increase in employment, rather than people leaving the workforce, the BBC reports.
The US Labor Department also revised its figures for March and February upwards. The February number was revised up to 332,000, the best monthly gain since May 2010.
