Stocks rallied on Friday as a rebound in bond yields eased some of the recession fears. The gains closed out a wild week on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrials screamed higher 270.66 points, or 1.1%, to 25,850.05. The 30-stock index was on track, however, to lose 1.6% on the week.
The S&P 500 gained 37.28 points, or 1.3%, to 2,885.24
The NASDAQ vaulted 117.8 points, or 1.5%, to 7,884.59. Apple and Nvidia led the gains.
Bond yields, which rattled the markets this week, climbed back from their historic lows on Friday. The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield dropped to a record low on Thursday, while the yield on the benchmark 10-year notes dipped to a three-year low, as investors sought out safe-haven assets.
Bank stocks rallied along with the rise in bond yields on Friday as Bank of America and Citigroup both gained more than 2.5%.
Chip maker Nvidia's stock jumped nearly 6% on Friday after it reported better-than-expected fiscal-second quarter earnings.
General Electric, which had its worst day in 11 years Thursday on Madoff whistleblower's fraud claims, rebounded on Friday after CEO Larry Culp called the accusation “market manipulation” and bought nearly $2 million worth of the company's stock. Shares of GE surged more than 8%.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dropped, lifting yields to 1.56% from Thursday's 1.5%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions
Oil prices moved upward 24 cents to $54.71 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices slumped $8.80 to $1,522.40 U.S. an ounce.