U.S. stocks open higher after payrolls data; Dow Jones up 0.13%

U.S. stocks opened higher on Friday, supported by strong U.S. employment data, although the report added to expectations for the Federal Reserve to begin tapering its stimulus program before the year end. 

During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.13%, the S&P 500 index added 0.18%, while the Nasdaq Composite index gained 0.36%. 

In a report, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said the U.S. economy added 204,000 jobs in October, beating expectations for a 125,000 increase, after an upwardly revised 163,000 rise the previous month. 

The U.S. unemployment rate ticked up to 7.3% last month, from 7.2% in September, in line with expectations. 

The strong data added to expectations that the Fed could begin scaling back its asset purchase program as soon as next month, after a report on Thursday showed that U.S. gross domestic product grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.8% in the three months to September, beating expectations for growth of 2%. 

Twitter remained in the spotlight for its second day on the New York Stock Exchange, with shares rallying 1.71%. 

Adding to gains, Microsoft climbed 0.40% amid reports Stephen Elop, a candidate to replace Steve Ballmer as the company's chief executive officer, would consider refocusing the firm's strategy around making Office software programs available on a broad variety of smartphones and tablets, including those made by Apple and Google. 

On the downside, Tesla Motors plummeted 1.88% after the third fire in five weeks involving the company's Model S. 

Among earnings, late Thursday, Walt Disney reported lower income at cable networks including ESPN, the company’s biggest source of profit, sending shares down 0.33%. 

Other companies likely to be in focus included de Brookfield Asset Management and Cablevision, scheduled to report quarterly results later in the day. 

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 retreated 0.89%, France’s CAC 40 tumbled 1.03%, Germany's DAX declined 0.49%, while Britain's FTSE 100 slid 0.35%. 

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.60%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1%. 

Later in the day, the University of Michigan was to release the preliminary reading of its consumer sentiment index.