IN New York, the Dow Jones share index soared into record territory as Wall Street decided that the government's May employment report did not give the Federal Reserve enough reason to raise interest rates.

The index was 1.79 per cent or 130.49 points higher at 7435.78 at the close of trade. The Labour Department said 138,000 new jobs were created in May, lower than economists had expected and down from a revised 323,000 in April. The unemployment rate fell to 4.8 per cent in May from 4.9 per cent in April. Market watchers said the data pointed to both an economic slowdown and a tighter labour market, which could make any interest rate increase harder to justify.