NEW YORK — U.S. stocks closed higher Friday, giving an extra lift to weekly gains, as investors focused on strong corporate results and the positive aspects of a largely disappointing monthly jobs report.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 29.89 points, or 0.3 percent, to 12,092.15. A 1.5 percent rise in the shares of Kraft Foods Inc. led gains for 20 of its 30 components.
The Dow has closed higher for the past five straight trading days and is trading near its highest levels since mid-2008.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 ended up 3.77 points, or 0.3 percent, at 1,310.87, with technology companies faring the best and utilities the worst among its 10 industry groups. The Nasdaq composite rose 15.42 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,769.3.
The major indexes spent much of the day notching small gains or losses after the U.S. government reported the economy created only 36,000 jobs in January, missing forecasts of a gain of 140,000.
While the numbers were disconcerting, the “inclement weather played some role in suppressing the overall payroll count,” said Bart van Ark, chief economist at the Conference Board.
The U.S. government also said the jobless rate dipped to 9 percent in January, its lowest level since April 2009.
Analysts said the jobs report also bolsters the case for the Federal Reserve to keep markets flush with liquidity, which has been a boon for stocks for the past two years.
“The market is holding up on a weaker jobs report because it points to continued quantitative easing,” said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners, referring to the central bank’s policy of increasing money supply to support the recovery.
The indexes rebounded for the week, which was colored by shifting sentiment about whether Egyptian protests would lead to more instability in the region as well as U.S. data showing strength in manufacturing.
For the session, big gainers included JDSU, whose shares jumped 27 percent after the maker of optical-networking gear swung to a profit, beating Wall Street’s expectations. The stock was the best performer on the S&P 500.
