U.S. stocks were soldily higher on Friday as August employment data was less negative than anticipated.

Nonfarm payrolls declined by 54,000, the Labor Department reported on Friday, significantly less than an expected 100,000 jobs.

Employment remains a sticking point in discussions on the U.S. economy, so much so that President Obama is expected to announce new initiatives next week to stimulate the economy, and in consequence employment growth.

While the numbers were less than expected Friday, it was the third month in a row that employment declined.

"The recovery may be wobbly but it is still staggering forward," Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts told Reuters Thomson. "The figures take some of the pressure off the Fed to do something quickly to shore up the recovery, but they won't help the administration as the mid-term elections approach."

At the close of trading Friday the Dow Jones Industrials were up 127.83 points or 1.24% at 10,447.93.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 33.74 points or 1.53% at 2,233.75.

The Standard and Poor's 500 was up 14.40 points or 1.32% at 1,104.50.

The U.S. dollar was generally stronger around the New York close Friday, although it firmed a touch against the Swiss franc which eased to 1.0167.

The Japanese yen was little changed at 84.40. The euro however rose strongly to 1.2891. The British pound was higher at 1.5456, while the Australian dollar continued its recent rally to .9161. The Canadian dollar was sharply higher at 1.0393.