Markets End the Week With a Surge

The stock market ended another up-and-down week with a strong day. The Dow climbed 658 points, or 2.1%, to 31,288; the S&P 500 rose 72 points, or 1.9%, to 3,863; and the Nasdaq rose 201 points, or 1.7%, to 11,452. The Wall Street Journal chalks up much of the good mood to a report showing that retail sales were stronger than expected in June. Also helping: comments from Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic suggesting that he would not support a rate hike of one full percentage point when the Fed meets later this month, per CNBC. (A hike of that historic size is apparently on the table.)

All in all, it suggests the market's months-long selloff may be near an end, Brad McMillan of Commonwealth Financial Network tells the Journal. “We’re in a bottoming process,” he says. “What you’re seeing now depends on whether you see earnings as good or bad. Yesterday was bad, but we’re still seeing expected earnings growth.” For the week, the Dow slipped less than a percentage point, while the S&P and Nasdaq fell more than 1%. (More stock market stories.)