US stocks bounded higher yesterday, giving Dow industrials their best week since last July, after the US government's latest employment report showed some easing of the tight labour market.

Investors interpreted the report as a sign that the Federal Reserve's four rate increases since last June may finally be slowing the economy just enough to prevent inflation, analysts said.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 202.28, to close at 10,367.20. For the week, the blue-chip index rose 505.08 points, its best performance since the week ended July 2nd, 1999, when it rose 586.68.

Stocks shot higher after the Labour Department reported 43,000 jobs were created in February, well below analysts' expectations and the weakest since May. The nation's unemployment ticked up to 4.1 per cent in February from 4 per cent in January, but remained at a 30-year low.