Stocks rebounded Friday as investors breathed a sigh of relief at the news that the U.S. added more jobs than expected during July, putting a halt to one of the worst selloffs since the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

The AFL-CIO took revenge on New Jersey legislators who supported a pension and health benefits overhaul by voting Thursday not to endorse any lawmaker who supported the deal, including fellow union members and the Legislature's most powerful Democrat.

The two-week plunge in stock prices is signaling economic anxiety, but it's also compounding the problem: Lower stock prices are shrinking Americans' wealth, rattling their confidence and making them less inclined to spend. And employers may become even slower to hire.

An obscure provision tucked into the federal health care law has turned into a jackpot for Massachusetts hospitals, but officials in other states are upset because the money will come from their hospitals.