US stocks settled almost where they started on Friday, but only after a volatile day of trading that capped one of the wildest weeks on Wall Street in recent years, leaving both American and global equities on pace for their worst year in a decade.
The S&P 500 index closed down 0.1 per cent, having failed to add to the gains from two consecutive late-afternoon rallies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was also modestly lower, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite eked out a 0.1 per cent gain.
The US indices had swung between positive and negative territory on the final full day of trading of 2018, reflecting the volatility that investors increasingly predict will persist into the new year.