Dow and S&P 500 closed at record highs on Friday

American markets closed at record highs on Friday, representing the seventh consecutive week of gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both closed at record levels.

The impressive job report released on Friday fueled investor confidence in US stocks. The US reported gains of 321,000 jobs in November. The US unemployment stands at 5.8%.

The payrolls number was much more robust than what economists polled by MarketWatch predicted, which called for 235,000 jobs.

The strengthening American job market could pressure the US Federal Reserve to increase interest rates sooner than expected.

Concerns that there will be an interest rate hike sooner than later has capped gains on Wall Street, according to senior portfolio manager at Fort Pitt Capital, Kim Forrest.

The S&P 500 (SPX) increased by 0.2% (3.45 points), closing at an all-time high of 2,075.37. The gain was mostly because of gains in financials and health-care sector stocks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) almost hit the 18,000 level settling 58.60 points up (0.3%), closing at 17,958.79. The two financial firms JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Goldman Sachs (GS) were among the biggest gainers.

The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) gained 11.32 points, or 0.2%, closing at 4,780.76.

Markets overseas

The European Central Bank did not talk about a potential future stimulus package at its Thursday meeting, with European stocks gaining 1%. The FTSE 100 rose 1%.

Trading volume in China reached a record, with the Shanghai Composite Index closing up 1.3%. The index has increased by almost 10% this week.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index only increased by 0.2%.