​Stocks finished strong on the last day of November, helping major indices move further into positive territory. The S&P 500 closed up 1.8% to 2,760.17, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) ended up 1.7% to 25,536.46, and the NASDAQ closed up 0.3% to 7,330.54. Rumors of easing trade tensions with China on Friday helped the NASDAQ move into positive territory for the month. Only the Russell 2000 is in negative territory for the year. 

​US equities rallied on the last day of the worst month for the S&P 500 since September 2011. The S&P 500 closed the month down 6.9%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) closed down 5.1%, the NASDAQ ended down 9.2%, and the Russell 2000 finished down 10.9%. Before the last week of the month, both the DJIA and S&P 500 entered negative territory for the year. 

​Stocks ended September mixed, as the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) led positive returns, while the Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 declined. 

​The Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow) and S&P 500 had their best August since 2014, closing up 2.2% to 25,964.82 and 3.0% to 2,901.52, respectively. The Nasdaq, which finished the month up 5.7% at 8,109.54, had its best August performance since 2000. During the month, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached record highs.

​Markets performed well in July, with major indices closing in strong, positive territory. The S&P 500 increased 3.6% to 2,816 in July and is up 5.3% year to date. Similarly, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) increased nearly 5% during the month to 25,415.19, and the NASDAQ increased 2.2% to 7,671.79. 

​Despite closing down considerably on the last day of May - due to confirmation that the US will proceed with tariff plans against its North American and European allies - broad indices closed the month of May in positive territory.

Major indices, with the exception of the Nasdaq, slightly increased in the month of April. The Russell 2000 led major indices with a gain of 0.6%, while the Nasdaq lagged with a flat return. Year to date, returns on the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), Nasdaq, and Russell 2000 are fairly mixed. Trailing-twelve-month returns are still in positive territory, thanks to strong returns in 2017.

​The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500, and NASDAQ all closed down greater than 2.5% in March, while the Russell 2000 closed up 1.1%. The poor performance of the DJIA, S&P 500, and NASDAQ in March turned the indices into negative territory for the 2018 calendar year so far and resulted in the first quarterly loss since the third quarter of 2015. 

​Major stock indices declined in February, as market volatility increased. The S&P 500 snapped a 10-month winning streak by declining 3.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and Russell 2000 also declined near 4.0%, while the NASDAQ, faring better than the others, declined 1.9%. February marked the worst performance for both the Dow and the S&P 500 in two years.

​Major stock market indices had a great start to the year in January, as the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), and the NASDAQ all recording more than 5% gains. Most notable was the NASDAQ, which reached a 7.4% return over the month. Similarly, these returns bolstered the trailing-twelve-month returns of the respective indices, as the DJIA and NASDAQ have exceeded over 30%.