Wall Street capped a turbulent week of trading Friday with a broad rally for stocks as relief flowed through the market, even as deadly attacks raged in Ukraine. Oil fell and investors turned away from gold and other traditional havens they favor when fear is high.
The S&P 500 climbed 2.2% and notched its first weekly gain in three weeks. The benchmark index was following up on a wild Thursday when it careened from a 2.6% loss to a gain of 1.5%. Stocks have swung sharply with uncertainty about how much Russia’s invasion will push up inflation, particularly oil and natural gas prices, and drag on the global economy.
Such big swings are likely to continue, with so much uncertainty not only about Ukraine but also about interest rates. The Federal Reserve is caught in a delicate dance where it has to raise interest rates enough to rein in high inflation but not so much as to cause a recession.
The S&P 500 rose 95.95 points to 4,384.65. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 834.92 points, or 2.5%, to 34,058.75. The Nasdaq composite gained 221.04 points, or 1.6%, to 13,694.62 after swinging between modest gains and losses. A day earlier, it briefly fell more than 20% below its record high, before roaring back suddenly.
