US stocks hit record highs despite weak jobs report

US stocks rebounded from losses in late trade Friday, setting record highs despite a weaker-than-expected US July jobs report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 30.34 (0.19 percent) at 15,658.36. The broad-market S&P 500 advanced 2.80 (0.16 percent) to 1,709.67. Both the Dow and S&P set all-time closing records. And the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite rose a solid 13.84 (0.38 percent) to 3,689.59. The Labor Department said the United States added 162,000 jobs in July, well below the 175,000 expected on average by analysts. The unemployment rate fell to 7.4 percent from 7.6 percent in June. "The stock market started the day on a weak note after the disappointing July employment report, but was there ever a doubt that it would make a rebound try? We think not," Briefing.com said in a market note. "The stock market has been conditioned to buy on the dips, because of the policy support provided by the Fed," the analysts said. They said it would be "tough" for the Federal Reserve to rationalize pulling back on its asset-buying program based on the July jobs report. Embattled computer maker Dell soared 5.6 percent to $13.68, the most actively traded stock on the Nasdaq, after a sweetened offer from a Michael Dell-led consortium was accepted by a special Dell committee. The vote on the controversial go-private transaction was delayed for the third time. Facebook jumped 1.5 percent to $38.05, above last year's $38 initial public offering, still riding a wave of investor enthusiasm after better-than-expected mobile advertising revenues. The stock hit an intraday peak of $38.49. Dow member Chevron dipped 1.2 percent after earnings came in 19 cents shy of the $2.96 per share expected by analysts. Global oil and gas production fell to 2.58 million barrels a day from 2.62 million. Refinery division earnings also fell steeply. Online professional networking firm LinkedIn soared 10.6 percent after profits rose 32 percent. The company also increased some of its full-year 2013 forecasts on financial performance. Insurer AIG added 2.7 percent after announcing that earnings rose by 17 percent and that it would pay its first shareholder dividend since being rescued in the biggest government bailout during the financial crisis. Bond prices surged. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond fell to 2.60 percent from 2.72 percent late Thursday, while the 30-year dropped to 3.69 percent from 3.77 percent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.