Stocks mostly lower after a day of wild swings
The Dow edged back up, closing the day up 61 points. The S&P 500 closed down a point, and the Nasdaq closed down 24 points, as global markets took heavier hits on Friday.
Pedestrians walk past the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, Aug. 5, 2011 in New York. Fears that the economy might dip back into recession helped send the Dow Jones industrial average down 513 points on Thursday. European leaders are struggling to contain that region's debt problems, prompting comparisons to the 2008 financial crisis. Markets tumbled from Tokyo to London on Friday as overseas traders reacted to the selloff.
Jin Lee / AP
Stocks are closing mostly lower after a day of whipsaw trading. The Dow Jones industrial average traded in a huge range of 400 points.
Investors are fearful that the debt crisis in Europe might infect banks there, roiling financial markets worldwide.
Stocks opened higher Friday after the government said hiring picked up in July, but the gains were erased within 25 minutes.
The Dow closed up 61 points, or 0.5 percent, at 11,445. The S&P 500 closed down a point, or 0.1 percent, at 1,199. The Nasdaq composite index closed down 24, or 0.9 percent, at 2,532.
The Dow fell 513 points Thursday, the biggest loss since 2008.
Three stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was heavy at 8.6 billion shares.