Dow closes above 40,000 as US stocks finish week higher

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 40,000 for the first time Friday, while US stocks finished the week on a higher note.

The blue-chip index, which includes 30 prominent American companies, rose 247 points, or 0.62%, to end the session at 40,000.90.

While it climbed to an all-time high of 40,257.24 during the day, the index increased 1.6% this week, posting gains in the last three consecutive trading days.

The S&P 500, meanwhile, added almost 31 points, or 0.55%, to close at 5,615 and the Nasdaq gained 115 points, or 0.63%, to 18,398.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, dove 3.56% to 12.46. The 10-year US Treasury yield shed 0.12% to 4.185%.

The dollar index fell 0.33% to 104.09, while the euro increased 0.37% to $1.0905 against the greenback.

Precious metals were in negative territory, with gold losing 0.14% to $2,412 per ounce and silver decreasing 2.1% to $30.80.

Oil prices were down around 0.4%, with global benchmark Brent crude at $85.05 and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate at $82.26.

Bitcoin, meanwhile, fell below the $58,000 level again and it was trading around $57,643 with a daily loss of just 0.03% at 4.40 p.m. EDT. Ethereum was at $3,100 at the time with a decline of 0.45%.

The value of the cryptocurrency market stood at $2.12 trillion with a 0.06% daily loss, while Bitcoin's share, known as dominance, was at 53.3% and Ethereum's was at 17.6%, according to CoinMarketCap, a digital asset price-tracking website.