The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 24,706.35 on Friday with a gain of 336.25 points or 1.38%. The S&P 500 closed at 2,670.71 for a gain of 34.75 points or 1.32%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 7,157.23 for a gain of 72.76 points or 1.03%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 17.73 for a loss of 0.33 points or -1.83%.
For the week, the S&P 500 gained 3.9%, the Dow Jones gained 3.8% and the Nasdaq gained 3.7%.
For the year, the Nasdaq has a gain of 7.9%, the S&P 500 is up 6.5% and the Dow Jones has a return of 5.9%
Friday’s market movers
U.S. market indexes continued to gain through the first major week of fourth-quarter earnings with some help from international developments Friday. Stocks closed higher for a fourth day.
International trade with China remained in the headlines as the Treasury secretary reportedly suggested repealing some of the tariffs on Chinese imports and trade officials are also discussing reopening trade between the two countries for top chicken producers. On Friday, it was also reported that President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are scheduled to meet in February to discuss nuclear warfare.
Several companies posted strong gains Friday with earnings beats. VF Corp. (VFC, Financial) and Schlumberger (SLB, Financial) led earnings gains with returns of 12.31% and 7.81%. Analysts also reported that earnings estimates for S&P 500 companies had increased slightly for the fourth quarter.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- Industrial production increased 0.3% in December and 4% annually.
- The Michigan Inflation Expectation was reported at 2.7%.
- The Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index decreased to 90.7 from 98.3.
- The Baker Hughes North American oil rig count increased to 1,259 from 1,151.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Home Depot (HD, Financial) 2.42%
- Caterpillar (CAT, Financial) 2.12%
- UnitedHealth (UNH, Financial) 2.06%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,480.77 for a gain of 13.52 points or 0.92%. The S&P 600 closed at 924.28 for a gain of 9.15 points or 1.00%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth TSM Index closed at 9,287.23 for a gain of 117.32 points or 1.28%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Value TSM Index closed at 9,389.93 for a gain of 92.31 points or 0.99%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1,817.26 for a gain of 25.06 points or 1.40%; the S&P 100 at 1,181.73 for a gain of 13.87 points or 1.19%; the Russell 3000 at 1,575.35 for a gain of 20.00 points or 1.29%; the Russell 1000 at 1,478.23 for a gain of 19.04 points or 1.30%; the Wilshire 5000 at 27,618.39 for a gain of 351.95 or 1.29%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 671.75 for a gain of 7.24 points or 1.09%.
