ASX 200 soars 1.7pc in best day in five months; jobless rate jumps; Aristocrat jumps; Incitec, Fonterra rise

Andrew Forrest's Fortescue will be 'doing the numbers' on hydrogen plant: Incitec. Bourse jumps 1.7 per cent as jobs data adds to rate cut optimism. Aristocrat soars. Incitec, Fonterra rise. Namoi falls. 

Jobs and rate cut pathways are in focus on equity markets. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Welcome to the Trading Day blog for Thursday, May 16. The ASX 200 index closed 1.7 per cent higher at 7881.30 points, after rising as much as 1.9 per cent. Wall Street rallied to record highs on cooling US inflation. 

The Aussie dollar gave up its gains after the jobs data and is trading near US66.77c.