The Dow tacked on 330 points but pummeled to its worst week since December in today's trading. The Nasdaq also nabbed a triple-digit gain, thanks in part to Alphabet (GOOGL) layoffs, while the S&P 500 managed to snap its three-day losing streak. Despite an encouraging subscriber report from Netflix (NFLX), the Dow and S&P 500 logged their first weekly losses in 2023. Also worth noting, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) saw its biggest weekly percentage gain since Dec. 9, and the Nasdaq managed to walk away with a third-straight weekly win. 

GOLD, OIL PRICES SCORE WEEKLY GAINS

Oil prices settled higher on Friday to score a back-to-back weekly gain of 1.8%. Traders continued to brush off an Energy Information Administration (EIA) report showing an 8.4 million rise in U.S. crude inventories, as they remained optimistic about demand growth out of China. March-dated crude, which is now the front-month contract, rose $1.03, or 1.3%, to settle at $81.64 per barrel on the day.

Gold prices also finished higher, and marked its fifth consecutive weekly win to boot. Boosting the yellow metal was household demand for gold ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in China. February-dated gold added $4.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,928.20 per ounce. For the week, gold prices rose 0.3%.

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