Closing Bell: Sears to Close Out More Stores; Tech, Jobs Number Team Up to Boost Wall Street

Summary: Wall Street enjoyed big gains to close out a holiday-shortened week. Indexes rose on a better-than-expected June jobs report and a rally in high-momentum tech stocks. Crude oil prices closed lower after a weekly read on drilling activity in the U.S. showed another rise. The increase reverses a small dip seen a week earlier, its first drop in 24 weeks. That decrease was only the second this year. Sears Holdings Corp. declined after announcing even more store closures. The retailer said it would close eight Sears and 35 Kmart locations that were unprofitable. The closures are part of Sears' cost-cutting strategy. Tesla Inc. made a small rebound after briefly entering bear market territory a day earlier. The automaker has slumped in recent days, falling nearly 15% since the beginning of the week.