Major US indexes closed mostly higher Friday, and several of them notched weekly gains, despite a recent run of daily swings on Wall Street as traders try to figure out what’s next for the economy.

The S&P 500 index rose 0.5 per cent after spending the day veering between a gain of 0.6 per cent and a 0.4 per cent decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4 per cent, while the Nasdaq composite fell 0.2 per cent.

The indexes alternated nearly every day this week between gains and losses. Investors are trying to suss out what’s next for inflation and the global economy as the repercussions of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continue to play out.

The benchmark S&P 500 posted a 1.8 per cent gain for the week. That follows a 6.2 per cent rise last week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq and Dow have also posted a weekly gain now the past two weeks.

The Australian sharemarket is set for a positive start to the week, with futures on Saturday pointing to a gain of 33 points, or 0.5 per cent, this morning.

Bond yields rose significantly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped to 2.48 per cent from 2.34 per cent late Thursday. Crude oil prices rose moderately after slipping earlier in the day.

“We’re still in this relatively neutral outlook right now, trying to digest what’s happening at the Federal Reserve, watching events in Russia-Ukraine and then getting ready for the first-quarter earnings season,” said Tom Hainlin, national investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management.

The S&P 500 rose 22.90 points to 4,543.06. The Dow gained 153.30 points to 34,861.24, and the Nasdaq fell 22.54 points to 14,169.30.

Smaller company stocks also rose. The Russell 2000 index added 2.54 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 2,077.98.