Stocks extended their midday gains on Friday with a flourish. The Dow added 749 points and nabbed a third-straight weekly win, as traders weighed reports from American Express (AXP) and Verizon Communications (VZ). The S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq settled confidently higher as well, with all three indexes scoring their best weeks since June 24. Elsewhere, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) logged its worst weekly loss since Sept. 9.

Cooling Treasury yields injected some positivity into the market today. The 10-year benchmark reversed from a high of 4.33% after some Federal Reserve officials expressed concerns over additional aggressive rate hikes, which may tighten the economy too much.

The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 31,082.56) rose 749 points, or 2.5% for the day, and 4.9% for the week. Caterpillar (CAT) led the gainers, adding 6.1%, while Verizon Communications (VZ) paced the laggards with a 4.5% loss.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,752.75) added 87 points, or 2.4 % for the day, and 4.7% for the week. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 10,859.72) rose 244.9 points, or 2.3% for the session, and 5.2% for the week. 

Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 29.69) shed 0.3 points or 1% for the session, and 7.2% for the week. 

OIL, GOLD PRICES NOTCH WEEKLY WINS

Oil prices settled higher on Friday to log a 0.5% weekly win. November-dated crude rose 54 cents, or 0.6%, to finish at $85.05 per barrel on the day. Meanwhile, natural gas futures dropped more than 20% for the week amid softening demand. 

Gold prices were also higher, and registered a 0.5% gain for the week as well. Today's pop came amid rumors that the Federal Reserve will introduce a smaller interest rate hike in December. December-dated gold added $19.50, or 1.2%, to close at $1,656.30 an ounce for the day.

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