Stock Market Today: Stocks end higher as markets end wild week

Updated at 4:51 PM EDT by Rob Lenihan

Stocks finished higher Friday, as Wall Street brought the curtain down on one of the wildest weeks on record,

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 619.05 points, or 1.56%, to finish the session at 40,212.71, while the S&P 500 gained 1.81% to close at 5,363.36 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 2.06% end the day at 16,724.46.

The S&P 500 posted a 5.7% advance for its best week since November 2023, according to CNBC. The Nasdaq rose 7.3% during the week for its best performance since November 2022. The Dow gained nearly 5% over the week.

Stocks climbed following comments from the White House that President Donald Trump is “optimistic” China will seek a deal with the U.S.

“’Rollercoaster’” is not a technical term, but it is probably the best adjective to describe price action across equity markets this week,” said Adam Turnquist, Chief Technical Strategist for LPL Financial. 

“Signs of a capitulation were evident over the last week as momentum and breadth indicators reached levels commensurate with other major turning points in equity markets," he added.

While there has been some recent technical progress, Turnquist said that “we recognize uncertainty and risks remain high, but argue it comes with the territory of any major market low.”

"The weight of the technical evidence suggests the broader market has reached capitulation levels," he said. "This doesn’t imply stocks will immediately shoot higher or that the period of high volatility is over." 

Updated at 12:50 PM EDT

Vix-ated

Stocks are moving higher into the afternoon session, with the S&P 500 last up 65 points, or 1.24%, while the Nasdaq gained 238 points, or 1.45% despite no change in market conditions or a headline-moving event. 

The VIX index is creeping higher, however, and at $41.50 could still stoke some notable market moves into the close of the session.

during covid crash, $VIX stays above $30 for 80 days. pic.twitter.com/BZpaxtlMFr— Linda Tang (@LindaTangUSA) April 11, 2025

Updated at 11:15 AM EDT

Take 5?

Long-dated 30-year Treasury yields were back testing the 5% mark following comments from New York Fed President John Williams, who told an event hosted by the Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce that tariffs could quicken inflation pressures and boost unemployment over the coming year.

"It's hard to know with any precision how the economy will evolve," Williams said. "Given the uncertain effects of recently announced tariffs and other policy changes, there is an unusually wide range of outcomes that could transpire."

He did, however, warned that PCE inflation could accelerate back to as high as 4% this year, with unemployment in 2026 at risk of rising to has high as 5%.

Benchmark 10-year note yield rose another 4 basis points following his remarks to trade at 4.582%, while 30-year bonds were last marked at 4.984%.

Fed's Williams: The key question is if higher inflation spills into 2026.— FinancialJuice (@financialjuice) April 11, 2025

Updated at 10:10 AM EDT

Michigan blue(s)

A grim reading of consumer sentiment and inflation expectations from the University of Michigan's monthly survey has pushed Treasury yields higher yet again in early trading, adding deeper angst to the broader financial markets. 

The survey's headline sentiment index slumped 7 points to 50.8 points in March, while year-ahead inflation expectations soared to 6.7%, the highest reading since November of 1981. 

Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were last-marked at 4.521%, an 11 basis point increase from overnight levels, with 30-year bonds trading at 4.927% following the biggest weekly slump in more than four decades.

Related: Bond, dollar rout spark concerns of safe-haven status of U.S. assets

Updated at 9:36 AM EDT

Red open

The S&P 500 was marked 31 points, or 0.6% lower in the opening minutes of trading, with the Nasdaq down 74 points 0.44%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2200 points while the Russell 2000 fell 11 points, or 0.58%

Benchmark 10-year note yields were last up 9 basis points on the session at 4.501% while 30-year bonds were back testing 5% and trading at 4.931%.

S&P 500 Opening Bell Heatmap (Apr. 11, 2025)$SPY -0.09%