Oil Price Slump Brings Brief Relief to US Markets

The US stock and bond markets experienced a much-needed reprieve from rising oil prices on Friday. This cooldown helped ease some of the pressure that had been building up, resulting in the S&P 500 closing out its first winning week in three.

The S&P 500 added 0.5% to break a three-day losing streak marked by big swings due to rising yields in the bond market. Despite the week's uneasiness, the main measure of the US stock market's health pulled back within 0.7% of its all-time high set last month.

The relief is temporary, but it's a welcome respite for investors who had been bracing themselves for further volatility.