Stocks finished a volatile and monumentally-important week with a flourish today. Thanks to outsized gains today, the Dow and S&P 500 notched their best weekly performances since November 2023. The former crossed above 44,000 for the first time ever, and the latter notched a third-straight record close while briefly surpassing 6,000 for the first time ever. 

The tech-heavy Nasdaq logged a record close of its own and turned in its best weekly performance since September 13. Not to be outdone, the small-cap Russell 2000 Index (RUT) had its best weekly gain since April 2020, adding 8.4%. Against this backdrop, Wall Street's "fear gauge," the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) clocked its lowest close since Aug. 19. 

Gold Poised for Steep Weekly Loss; Oil Brushes off China Stimulus

Oil futures edged lower Friday, as President-elect Trump's call for more U.S. production overshadowed China's new stimulus measures and their impact on energy demand expectation. For the session, December-dated West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude shed $1.98 cents, or 2.7%, to settle at $70.38 a barrel, but the front-month contract rose 1.3% this week. 

Gold prices also tumbled today, heading for their biggest weekly fall in more than five months amid a strong dollar. Traders also weighed the implications for bullion following Trump's victory and the future of interest rate moves. Gold futures settled 0.3% lower at $2,697.90.

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