2nd quarter kicks off with March jobs report

After one of the most volatile quarters since the financial crisis, Wall Street kicks off the second quarter with the release of the government’s March jobs report, a closely watched economic data point that could set the tone for the stock market in the coming weeks and months.

The benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500, which was down more than 10% back in February, rallied back sharply and finished the first quarter up 0.8%. In pre-market trading Friday the benchmark U.S. stock index was pointing 0.4% lower.

The employment picture has been a bright spot for the U.S. economy. The economy generated an average of 229,000 new jobs last year. In February, the latest job data available, 242,000 new jobs were created and the unemployment rate came in at 4.9%.

According to Dow Jones, economists forecast 213,000 new jobs were created in March, which would continue the consistent 200,000-plus monthly readings.

BREAKING NEWS: The government reported that the economy created a better-than-expected 215,000 new jobs last month and the unemployment rate ticked up to 5%.

Normally, markets would shudder at the thought of a really strong jobs number coming in as it would raise fears of the Federal Reserve speeding up its interest rate-hike timetable. But given Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s dovish speech Tuesday, when she pretty much said the Fed was in no rush to hike rates given market turbulence and economic headwinds from abroad, this month’s jobs number is unlikely to play into the Fed’s short-term thinking as much as it might have in prior months.

Still, the jobs report is critical from an economic standpoint, because a strong job market is a sign of a healthy economy, and one with the capacity to grow.