Dow falls 653 points as Brent crude settles at its highest since April

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday, Oct. 23, as rising oil prices weighed on the broader market, even as technology shares steadied after Thursday's selloff, Reuters reported.

How the indexes closed

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 652.82 points, or 1.23%, to 52,215.16. The S&P 500 lost 39.75 points, or 0.52%, to 7,623.68, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 53.52 points, or 0.21%, to 25,955.34.

For the week, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq dropped 0.7%. The Dow rose 0.4%, its third straight weekly gain, according to Reuters.

Oil hits a nearly six-month high

Brent crude futures settled at $116.72 a barrel, up $3.55 or 3.14%, their highest close since April 29. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose $3.80, or 3.8%, to $103.27. Brent finished the week up 6%, Reuters reported.

Reuters said Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia fanned fears of further disruption to Middle East energy supplies, and United Arab Emirates authorities reported an oil spill. CNBC said the gains also followed reports that the U.S. and Israel may be drawing up plans for renewed strikes on Iran, and that Iran has said it is prepared to strike back.

Energy up, chips steady

The S&P 500 energy sector rose 2.5% to a record high. An index of semiconductor stocks gained 0.4% a day after a selloff, and the S&P 500 technology index also rose 0.4%.

Dow component American Express closed down 3.7% after saying it would cut about 5% of its global workforce.

Outside the U.S., European shares also ended lower.