NEW YORK -- US stocks had a mixed finish on Monday as Wall Street's recent wild moves calmed down a bit.
the&The P 500 added 7.64 points, or 0.2%, to 4,365.98, even as most stocks within it and across Wall Street weakened. The index was coming off its best week of the year, which itself came on the heels of several months of heavy losses.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 34.54, or 0.1%, to 34,095.86, and the Nasdaq composite gained 40.50, or 0.3%, to 13,518.78.
The flash point for stock ExchangeMoves in both directions have been what the bond market is doing, and it pulled back on Monday after its own extreme moves.
The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.64%. This figure is up from 4.57% on Friday, but still below the above 5% level it reached last month, its highest level since 2007. High yields hurt stock prices and other investments, by while slowing the economy and increasing pressure on the financial sector. system.
Next week there appear to be fewer major events on the calendar that could shake financial markets. It's a slower week for corporate earnings reports, with about 50 companies in the S.&P 500 started to say how much they earned during the summer. That's down from 150 the week before.
Constellation Energy rose 6.5% after reporting better results for the latest quarter than analysts expected.
Berkshire Hathaway's Class B shares fell 1.5% after it reported a loss for its latest quarter over the weekend. Much of the loss was due to declines in the value of some of Berkshire Hathaway's paper investments. If we look only at its operating profit, Warren Buffett's company exceeded analysts' expectations.
Even more companies than usual in the S&The P 500 has been beating Wall Street's earnings forecasts this reporting season. The index appears to be on track for its first growth in earnings per share in a year.
"Don't worry," Bank of America strategists led by Savita Subramanian wrote in a BofA Global Research report. "Profits were good."
Trading in WeWork shares was halted amid speculation about its financial health. It has fallen 98.5% this year to less than $1.
The events that perhaps have the greatest potential to shake up markets next week are scheduled speeches by Federal Reserve officials.
Last week, the Federal Reserve held its main interest rate steady for the second time in a row, leaving it at its highest level since 2001. It has raised its federal funds rate from near zero in hopes of taming high inflation.
Perhaps most importantly for markets, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell also hinted that a rapid rise in Treasury yields since the summer โ and the tumult it created in financial markets โ could act as substitutes for new rate increases if they remain โpersistentโ. This is because they themselves could be slowing down the economy and putting downward pressure on the economy.
A Federal Reserve report on Monday said a significant number of bank loan officers reported that they had tightened their standards for lending money. Many banks cited a less favorable or more uncertain outlook for the economy. A slowdown in credit could further slow the economy.
Powell's comments last week fueled hopes that the Federal Reserve may be done raising interest rates. Traders also raised bets that the central bank could begin cutting rates next summer. Rate cuts can act as steroids for financial markets.
Over the past two years, Wall Street has repeatedly raised hopes that interest rate cuts could be on the horizon, only to have them dashed when Federal Reserve officials pledged to keep interest rates high for a long time to ensure that inflation goes down.
A preliminary report will be released later this week that will show how much inflation American households are preparing for. These inflation expectations have been key for the Federal Reserve, which fears that too high expectations could trigger a vicious cycle that keeps inflation high.
In the oil market, crude oil prices rose after Saudi Arabia and Russia reiterated their commitment to maintain oil supply cuts of more than 1 million barrels per day until the end of the year.
The benchmark US crude oil barrel rose 31 cents to settle at $80.82. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 29 cents to $85.18 a barrel.
In foreign stock markets, indexes were mostly lower in Europe after jumping across much of Asia.
South Korean stocks rose 5.7% after the government reinstated a ban to prevent investors from betting that stock prices will fall by borrowing shares and selling them.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index gained 2.4% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 1.7%.
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AP journalist Zimo Zhong contributed.
