The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 25,628.90 on Friday with a loss of 623.34 points or -2.37%. The S&P 500 closed at 2,847.11 for a loss of 75.84 points or -2.59%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 7,751.77 for a loss of 239.62 points or -3.00%. The VIX Volatility Index was higher at 20.19 for a gain of 3.51 points or 21.04%.
For the week, the Dow Jones was down approximately 2%, the S&P 500 fell 2.5% and the Nasdaq declined 3.2%. For the year, the Nasdaq is up 16.8%, the S&P 500 has a gain of 13.6% and the Dow Jones has climbed 12.5%.
Friday’s market movers
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium and trade tariff retailiation from China were the day's top headlines. Indexes were lower across the board after China announced 5% and 10% tariffs on $75 billion worth of U.S. goods to go into effect Sept. 1 and Dec. 15. Friday's losses also put indexes in negative territory for a fourth consecutive week.
In Jackson Hole, Powell was dovish in his comments, acknowledging several new trade developments that have occurred since the Fed's last meeting in July and also suggesting a higher probability of another rate cut soon. Powell's comments also reinforced that the Fed is comprehensively considering a broader range of variables given fiscal trade policy, but also stated there are limited tools and few successful precedents for navigating such challenges.
In Treasuries, yields were also lower for the day as investors digested the new risks. The 30-year bond's price increased 130/32 to a yield of 2.024%.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- New home sales decreased 12.8% in July following a 20.9% increase. The seasonally adjusted annual rate of new home sales was 0.635 million, down from 0.728 million.
- The Baker Hughes North American oil rig count decreased to 1,055 from 1,077.
In the S&P 500, the energy, technology and consumer discretionary sectors led losses. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led losses:
- Apple (AAPL, Financial) -4.64%
- Intel (INTC, Financial) -3.87%
- American Express (AXP, Financial) -3.76%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,459.49 for a loss of 46.52 points or -3.09%. The S&P 600 closed at 896.50 for a loss of 28.85 points or -3.12%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Growth Index closed at 9,501.18 for a loss of 272.78 points or -2.79%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Value Index closed at 8,834.84 for a loss of 252.01 points or -2.77%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1,836.55 for a loss of 51.91 points or -2.75%; the S&P 100 at 1,256.91 for a loss of 34.40 points or -2.66%; the Nasdaq 100 at 7,464.99 for a loss of 242.43 points or -3.15%; the Russell 3000 at 1,670.74 for a loss of 44.66 points or -2.60%; the Russell 1000 at 1,576.36 for a loss of 41.58 points or -2.57%; the Wilshire 5000 at 29,127.63 for a loss of 780.65 points or -2.61%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 681.16 for a loss of 17.18 points or -2.46%.
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