Stocks Close Strong Week With A Whimper

The major averages rallied early on Friday after better than expected nonfarm payroll data, but the enthusiasm soon fizzled and stocks finished at session lows. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up better than triple digits at its best levels, but closed the day flat. The widely watched blue-chip index traded in a range between 12,007 and 12,146, closing at 12,019. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF

fell 0.09% to $124.86. Volume was lighter than normal with around 210.7 million SPY shares trading hands compared to a 3-month daily average of 267.4 million. The PowerShares QQQ Trust ETF

, which tracks the performance of the Nasdaq 100, lost 0.28% to close the week at $56.62. The QQQ has gained 4% in 2011 after rallying sharply this week. Crude oil gained ground throughout the trading day and went out on the highs. NYMEX crude futures added 0.77% to $100.97 while ICE Brent contracts gained 1.07% to $110.16. The United States Oil Fund ETF

notched a gain of 1.09% to $39.03 on the day. Gold also moved higher on Friday. COMEX gold futures gained 0.53% to $1,749.10. The SPDR Gold Trust ETF

finished the session 0.17% higher at $169.92. COMEX silver futures lost 0.47% to $32.605. U.S. Treasuries had a huge rally going into the weekend. The iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

added 1.43% to $118.67. The yield on the 10-Year Note fell 4.5 basis points to 2.04%. The U.S. Dollar moved higher on the back of the nonfarm payroll data. The PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish ETF

, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of foreign currencies, gained 0.32% to $22.12. The closely watched EUR/USD is currently trading at $1.3405.