Stocks Ended Lower Friday, Booked Weekly Gains

U.S. stocks edged down on Friday, but booked weekly gains, amid escalating concerns over an ongoing government shutdown. At close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 5.97 points, or 0.02%, to 23,995.95. The S&P 500 was off 0.38 point, or 0.01%,to 2,596.26. The Nasdaq Composite declined 14.59 points, or 0.21%, to 6,971.48. For the week, the Dow booked a weekly gain of 2.4%, the S&P 500 gained 2.5%, while the Nasdaq produced a return of 3.5%.

Oil futures ended lower Friday, but scoring a second weekly climb in a row. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery fell $1, or 1.9%, to settle at $51.59 a barrel. March Brent crude declined by $1.20, or 2%, to $60.48 a barrel.