The holiday-shortened week kicked off on Tuesday after being closed Monday for Labor Day. However, retail gas prices surged as Hurricane Harvey forced refineries to shut down, leading to curtailed petroleum shipments. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.1%, its biggest one-day loss since Aug 17, while the S&P 500 declined 0.8%. Threats from North Korea and powerful hurricane Irma weighed on the major indexes, dragging down shares of insurance companies as it churned through the Caribbean. On Wednesday, the Dow rebounded from its worst session in weeks, boosted by shares of energy stocks, which were among the best performers, rising alongside oil prices as Gulf Coast refineries continued to restart following Hurricane Harvey. In economic news, the service industry activity increased in August, as the ISM non-manufacturing composite index climbed to 55.3 from 53.9 in July. Additionally, the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, which covers economic activity from July through mid-August, showed the economy expanded at a modest-to-moderate pace across most districts. During the week, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.07%, its lowest yield since Nov. 9, 2016. On Thursday, initial claims for unemployment rose, but the increase is likely because of Hurricane Harvey. The unemployment rate held steady at 1.4%. The U.S. indices closed with mixed moves on Friday, as the Dow traded fractionally higher while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ shed some points. Market moves were mixed amid hurricane trepidation, yet West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 3.3% to settle at $47.48 a barrel.
