Dow Sheds More Than 600 Points as Brent Passes $116 and Houthi Attacks Rattle Wall Street

Wall Street ended a choppy week on the back foot, and the culprit was oil. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.2 percent to 52,215.16 on Friday, the S&P 500 dropped 0.5 percent to 7,623.68 and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.2 percent to 25,955.34, according to the Associated Press market tally. The Dow lost more than 600 points.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished lower for a second straight week. The Dow rose 0.4 percent over the five days and the small-cap Russell 2000 gained 2 percent. Even so, all four indexes remain up for the year, with the Nasdaq ahead 11.7 percent and the S&P 500 up 11.4 percent.

Why did stocks fall on Friday?

Fresh Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia revived worries about Middle East energy supply. Yahoo Finance's live coverage put the Brent December contract at $116.72 a barrel at the settle, with US crude just above $103. Energy was the one bright spot: Reuters reported the sector gained 2.4 percent to a record high, while most other S&P 500 groups declined, led by consumer staples and financials.

Airlines paid for it. United, Delta and American all fell on higher fuel costs. The University of Michigan also reported that consumer sentiment edged down to near a record low in October, with rising prices tied to the Middle East conflict weighing on households.

Which stocks moved the most?

American Express fell about 3 percent after announcing it would cut roughly 5 percent of its workforce, about 3,500 roles, and take a $336 million restructuring charge, per Yahoo Finance. Reuters noted the card issuer had raised its profit forecast the same day.