Stocks Ended at Record Highs

U.S. stocks rose and ended at record highs on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 190.60 points, or 0.69%, to 27,930.33. The S&P 500 was up 11.65 points, or 0.34%, to 3,397.16. The Nasdaq Composite gained 46.80 points, or 0.42%, to 11,311.80. For the week, the Dow ended virtually unchanged, the S&P 500 rose 0.7% and the Nasdaq booked a 2.7% gain.

Oil futures finished lower Friday, under pressure from continued worries over prospects for demand as the COVID-19 pandemic undermines economic growth. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery lost 48 cents, or 1.1%, to finish at $42.34 a barrel, while October Brent crude shed 55 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $44.35 a barrel. WTI ended the week with a gain of 0.1%, while Brent fell 1%.

Sales of previously-owned homes in the U.S. rose 24.7% between June and July to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.86 million, the National Association of Realtors reported Friday.

Mortgage rates continue to remain below 3%. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.99% for the week ending Aug. 20, rising three basis points from the week prior, Freddie Mac FMCC, -1.83% reported Thursday.