The Labor Department reported that the economy generated a net 236,000 new jobs in February, far more than expected, pulling the unemployment rate down to 7.7 percent from 7.9 percent.

That pushed the Dow over the 14,400 line for the first time, but a sell-off in the last 15 minutes of the session left the index shy of that level, up 66.27 points (0.46 percent) at 14,395.76.

The broader S&P 500 came close to surpassing its record high, set in October 2007, gaining 6.89 (0.45 percent) at 1,551.15.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 12.28 points (0.38 percent) at 3,244.37.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2013