S&P 500 Gains 2.4% To End Shaky Week On Positive Note

Wall Street stocks concluded a rollercoaster week on a positive note on Friday, rallying after strong Apple earnings and data suggesting a moderation in inflation in December.

The Dow Jones gained 1.7 percent to 34,725.

The S&P 500 advanced 2.4 percent to 4,431, while the Nasdaq jumped 3.1 percent to 13,770.

After opening lower, stocks pushed into positive territory most of the day before rising buoyantly in the final hours of trading, lifting all three major indices into the black for the week.

It was the latest midday reversal in a week that has seen early rallies peter out and torrid selling give way to sudden bargain-hunting.

Art Hogan, chief strategist at National Securities, described the dynamic as a "tug of war" between worries about tightening monetary policy on one side and recognition of fairly good economic data and earnings on the other.

Commerce Department data showed personal consumption prices rose 0.4 percent last month, in line with analysts' expectations and less than the month-on-month growth in the prior two months.

The report came on the heels of a better-than-expected US growth reading on Thursday.

Apple surged seven percent after reporting a record US$124 billion quarterly revenue and higher earnings amid heavy demand for smartphones and other goods despite supply chain problems that pinched sales.

The results also boosted shares of Amazon, Facebook parent Meta and Google parent Alphabet, all of which report next week.

Among other companies reporting results, Caterpillar and Chevron both dropped more than three percent while Visa shot up more than 10 percent. (AFP)