U.S. stocks rebound, but S&P 500 ends with loss

Stocks on Wall Street notched modest gains Friday, erasing some of the market’s steep losses from a day earlier.

The upbeat finish to a turbulent week still left the market with its third straight weekly loss.

Stocks swung between gains and losses all week as investors weighed the prospect of a prolonged trade war between the U.S. and China. Trading has been volatile since the dispute escalated earlier this month, with both sides raising tariffs on each other’s goods.

Financial companies led the buying Friday as the yield on the 10-year Treasury note reversed part of a steep slide a day earlier. Rising yields boost interest rates on loans, which makes lending more profitable.

The modest gains snapped a two-day losing streak for the S&P 500 as investors saw opportunity after the previous days’ wave of selling.

“Today you’re just seeing a rebound, really almost across the board, so that tells you yesterday everything was just being sold with no rhyme or reason,” said Ben Phillips, chief investment officer at EventShares.

The S&P 500 rose 3.82 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,826.06. The benchmark index ended the week with a 2.3 percent loss.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 95.22 points, or 0.4 percent, to

25,585.69. The Nasdaq composite added 8.72 points, or 0.1 percent, to

7,637.01.

Small company stocks fared better than the rest of the market. The Russell

2000 index climbed 12.73 points, or 0.9 percent, to

1,514.11.

Major stock indexes in Europe finished broadly higher.

The market’s modest rebound came ahead of a three-day holiday weekend. U.S. stock markets will be closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day.

The resumption of trade hostilities this month has interrupted a market rally that saw the S&P 500 recoup the fourth quarter’s sharp loss and hit a new high. The index is down

4.1 percent so far in May, though it’s still sporting a gain of 12.7 percent for the year.

The U.S. and China concluded their 11th round of trade talks earlier this month with no agreement. Instead, the U.S. moved to increase tariffs on Chinese goods, prompting China to reciprocate. The trade dispute escalated further after the U.S. proposed restrictions on technology sales to China, though it has temporarily backed off.