The Week That Was, The Week Ahead: Macro and Markets, August 23

U.S. stocks finished Friday higher after a volatile week as bond yields rose and worries about the country’s debt load remained prominent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.98% to 53,277.01, though it still logged its second straight weekly decline. The S&P 500 added 0.43% to 7,674.37, and the Nasdaq gained 0.33% to 29,308.86. The 10-year Treasury yield ended near 4.74%. Gold jumped 2.89% to $4,668.10, oil fell 1.65% to $86.77, and bitcoin rose 5.13% to $78,262.70. The VIX dropped to 15.13. The week’s backdrop included U.S. national debt topping $40 trillion, and the next major company event is Nvidia’s fiscal Q2 2027 earnings report.