Nasdaq, S&P 500 Settle at Highest Level Since August

The blue-chip benchmark settled lower for the week, however

Digital Content Manager

May 26, 2023 at 4:30 PM

Stocks extended their rallies into the long weekend, with Wall Street brushing off hot inflation data for April as optimism over a U.S. debt ceiling deal grew. The Dow added 328 points to snap a five-day losing streak, but still registered a weekly loss.

Meanwhile, the Nasdaq scored a fifth-straight week of gains to settle at its highest level since August. The S&P 500 did the same en route to weekly and daily wins. Elsewhere, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) clocked its best week since May 5.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

How does a trader avoid options assignment?
Debt ceiling talks likely to dominate coming week.
Plus, retail stock enjoying post-earnings surge; put traders betting on BIG; and more of this weeks' top headlines.

Summary 0526

Nyse nasdaq 0526

Things to Know Today

JPMorgan Chase (JPM) reportedly cut roughly 500 positions this week among its technology and operations groups, but is hiring for 13,000 job openings. (CNBC)
Ford Motor (F) stock surged after the car maker inked a deal with Tesla (TSLA) to allow Ford electric vehicle (EV) owners use Tesla charging stations. (MarketWatch)
A surprise profit boosted this apparel stock.
Why put traders blasted Big Lots stock.
Unpacking this week's biggest retail earnings reports.

Earnings May 262023

UVOL 0526

Gold Prices Fall for 3rd Straight Week

Oil price settled higher on Friday to score a 1% weekly gain. Though the future of crude output is unclear, knowledge the U.S. government often buys crude below $70 boosted the commodity, especially amid recent efforts to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. July-dated crude added 84 cents, or 1.2%, to close at $72.67 per barrel.

Gold prices also moved higher for the day, but marked a third-straight week in the red with a 1.4% dip. Evidence of persistently high inflation boosted the safe-haven asset today. For the session, June-dated gold rose 60 cents, or about 0.1%, to close at $1,943.70 an ounce.

Follow @Schaeffers

Minimize Risk While Maximizing Profits

There is no options strategy like this one, which consistently minimizes risk while maintaining maximum profits. Perfect for traders looking for ways to control risk, reduce losses, and increase the likelihood of success when trading calls and puts. The Schaeffer’s team has over 41 years of options trading success targeting +100% gains on every trade. Rest assured your losses are effectively limited to your initial cost at the time of making your move! Don't waste another second... join us right now before the next trade is released!