U.S. stocks end week higher; S&P, Dow hit new records

U.S. stocks eked out marginal gains amid thin volumes on Friday, but it was still enough to register fresh record highs for two of the three main benchmarks, capping a third straight week of gains.

The S&P 500 SPX, +0.03% closed fractionally higher at a new record level of 2,031.92 and gained 0.7% over the week. Dow industrial DJIA, +0.11% added 19.46 points, or 0.1% to 17,573.93 and ended the week 1% higher.

Dollar index finishes higher for third week in a row

The ICE U.S. Dollar Index finished higher for the third week in a row Friday, boosted by gains against the euro, pound and yen that pushed greenback rise to multi-year highs.

The index DXY, -0.57% a measure of the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was down 0.49% on the day to 87.5840. It was at 88.0120 late Thursday.
The euro EURUSD, +0.65%  traded at $1.2459 Friday afternoon after falling to $1.2355, its lowest point against the dollar in more than two years, after the jobs data. It traded at $1.2381 late Thursday.

The pound GBPUSD, +0.24% traded at $1.5880, compared with $1.5843 late Thursday. Weak U.K. industrial production data and the Bank of England’s decision to leave its key interest rate and bond-buying program unchanged weighed on the pound for most of the week.

 The dollar USDRUB, -0.35%  traded at 46.6845 rubles Friday, compared with 46.8255 late Thursday.

The dollar settled lower Friday after rising to a seven-year high during the Asia trading day. It USDJPY, -0.49% traded at 114.55 yen Friday, compared with ¥115.16 late Thursday.

Gas Market Update

Natural gas for December NGZ14, -0.57%  rose less than a penny, or 0.2%, to end at $4.4120 per million British thermal units on Nymex. On the week, natural gas jumped 14%, on expectations of colder-than-normal weather in the key heating markets in the U.S.

Gasoline and Oil Market Update

December gasoline RBZ4, +0.07%  rose less than a penny, or 0.2%, to settle at $2.1352 a gallon on Nymex. On the week, gasoline has lost 0.6%.

December heating oil HOZ4, +1.47%  rose 4 cents, or 1.7%, to finish at $2.4995 a gallon on Nymex. On the week, heating oil lost 0.5%.

Oil rebounds on U.S. jobs report, but ends week lower

Oil futures settled higher Friday after the U.S. jobless rate hit a six-year low.

sweet crude for December delivery CLZ4, +0.67% rose 74 cents, or 1%, to settle at $78.65 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On the week, however, prices declined 2.4%. It was New York-traded oil sixth straight weekly loss.