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Despite continuing drama in the White House and the fury of Mother Nature, stock growth remained steady for much of October. Favorable corporate earnings reports, a strong jobs sector, and growing consumer income overcame any trepidations investors may have had. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here posted monthly gains, led by the large caps of the Dow, which gained over 4% for the month and is up over 18% year-to-date. The tech-heavy Nasdaq has remained steady throughout the year, reaching new highs in October. The small caps of the Russell 2000 gained less than 1.0% for the month, but is up over 10.0% since the end of 2016.
By the close of trading on October 31, the price of crude oil (WTI) was $54.54 per barrel, up from the September 29 price of $47.07 per barrel. The national average retail regular gasoline price was $2.488 per gallon on October 30, down from the September 25 selling price of $2.583 and $0.258 more than a year ago. The price of gold increased by the end of October, closing at $1,271.80 on the last trading day of the month, down $18.04 from its September 29 price of $1,289.84.
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Despite continuing drama in the White House and the fury of Mother Nature, stock growth remained steady for much of October. Favorable corporate earnings reports, a strong jobs sector, and growing consumer income overcame any trepidations investors may have had. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here posted monthly gains, led by the large caps of the Dow, which gained over 4% for the month and is up over 18% year-to-date. The tech-heavy Nasdaq has remained steady throughout the year, reaching new highs in October. The small caps of the Russell 2000 gained less than 1.0% for the month, but is up over 10.0% since the end of 2016.
By the close of trading on October 31, the price of crude oil (WTI) was $54.54 per barrel, up from the September 29 price of $47.07 per barrel. The national average retail regular gasoline price was $2.488 per gallon on October 30, down from the September 25 selling price of $2.583 and $0.258 more than a year ago. The price of gold increased by the end of October, closing at $1,271.80 on the last trading day of the month, down $18.04 from its September 29 price of $1,289.84.
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Market/Index
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2016 Close
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Prior Month
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As of October 31
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Month Change
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YTD Change
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DJIA
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19762.60
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22405.09
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23377.24
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4.34%
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18.29%
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NASDAQ
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5383.12
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6495.96
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6727.67
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3.57%
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24.98%
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S&P 500
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2238.83
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2519.36
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2575.26
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2.22%
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15.03%
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Russell 2000
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1357.13
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1490.86
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1502.87
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0.81%
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10.74%
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Global Dow
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2528.21
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2907.67
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2959.78
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1.79%
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17.07%
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Fed. Funds
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0.50%-
0.75%
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1.00-1.25%
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1.00%-1.25%
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0 bps
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50 bps
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10-year Treasuries
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2.44%
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2.33%
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2.37%
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4 bps
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-7 bps
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Chart reflects price changes, not total return. Because it does not include dividends or splits, it should not be used to benchmark performance of specific investments.
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