Market Roundup: Markets End Week Up, Despite Return to Volatile Trading

Economy/Stock Market

The markets kicked off the week closing well into the green zone on Monday. Many stocks rebounded from Friday’s downswing on Federal Reserve comments. In a speech on Monday in Chicago, Fed Governor Lael Brainard cautioned prudence in raising interest rates. Indices closed lower on Tuesday with Energy stocks retreating amid a drop in crude oil. West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 3% to settle at $44.90 a barrel. Additionally, the International Energy Agency reduced its demand estimates by 100,000 barrels a day for this year and by 200,000 daily barrels in 2017. The trading session closed with mixed moves on Wednesday, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 shed some points while the NASDAQ added slight gains. West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell by 2.9% to settle at $43.58 a barrel. On Thursday, volatility returned to stocks after a relatively flat summer, after spending 43 trading days without a 1% move. Thursday’s 1% gain for the S&P 500 marked the fourth session out of five in which the index swung 1% or more. Financial and energy companies dragged down U.S. stocks on Friday with the three major indices falling. For the week all three indices posted weekly gains with the NASDAQ experiencing its biggest weekly jump since July.