Wall Street mounted a major comeback at the closing bell, culminating in a win on Friday and a turn-around that nearly wiped away Monday's heavy losses.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose close to 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) increased 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.1% or about 50 points.

Traders poured back in after Monday saw the worst rout of the year, and Wall Street's "fear gauge," the CBOE Volatility Index (^VIX), soared to its highest levels since the throes of the pandemic. But encouraging labor data and reassurances from analysts and economists helped to level-set the panicked mood.

All three major indexes closed the week in the red, but the S&P and the Nasdaq were down less than one-quarter of a percentage point.

A week of tremendous volatility and a dose of panic has come to a close. And the days ahead could help calm Wall Street's collective nerves.

A major inflation reading is on the economic calendar with July's Consumer Price Index set to be published on Wednesday.

The fresh data will come at a pivotal moment for the Fed. Officials have suggested a rate cut could arrive as soon as September, as long as new inflation readings continue to show progress in tamping down price pressures. Wall Street traders widely expect central bankers to begin lowering rates at the next policy meeting. A favorable report would cement those expectations and offer officials greater confidence to start the easing cycle.

Jobless claims on Thursday will also carry greater significance. After Monday's brutal sell-off, traders are still looking for reassurances of economic resilience. A consumer sentiment survey on Friday will give new insight into the public's expectations on inflation and the direction of the economy.

On the corporate front, major retailers Walmart and Home Depot are scheduled to report earnings on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.

Yahoo Finance's Brent Sanchez has a graphical breakdown of what to watch next week:

When the Fed cuts interest rates in September, it's likely we'll see a muted reaction for housing stocks.

Evercore ISI’s senior managing director Stephen Kim pointed out in a note that housing-related stocks like homebuilders trade with "inconsistent and fairly muted reactions to the first Fed rate cut."

Kim noted that the 10-year yield typically declines "well in advance" of the Fed's first cut. And this is the move — rather than the rate cut itself — that has helped homebuilding stocks outperform ahead of rate cuts in 1995, 2001, 2019, and this year as well.

Long-term Treasury yields have fallen this month amid fears of a slowdown in the economy that sparked a sell-off in global markets. Market participants have placed bets that the Fed will cut interest rates starting next month. Some are even betting that the central bank will cut rates by half a percentage point.

Meanwhile, mortgage rates have already moved lower, and borrowing costs are expected to fall even further ahead of the central bank taking action.

And as Kim noted, investors have been well out in front of this move for the last year — the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) has gained 28% in the last year while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) has risen 19%.

Shares of Nvidia are set to post a loss of 2% for the week at the end of trading Friday, as chipmakers and tech companies struggle through a rough patch of market action.

But the recent sell-off, analysts say, hasn't unraveled the chips trade, reports Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré. Wall Street analysts this week remained confident in the long-term prospects for Nvidia, which is now down about 20% over the last month and off more than 25% from its record closing high.

Earlier this week, Piper Sandler analysts called out a "tremendous opportunity" to buy Nvidia, AMD (AMD), and ON Semiconductor (ON) following the sector's recent sell-off.

Some analysts also took the opportunity to upgrade the stock during this sell-off.

On Friday, chip manufacturer TSMC (TSM), a supplier to Nvidia, posted a 45% year-over-year increase in sales in July — a sign that AI demand remains strong.

It was a brutal week for the value of the cable bundle, as Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and Paramount Global (PARA) both took significant write-downs on just how much their respective cable businesses are worth.

On Wednesday, WBD reported a massive $9.1 billion impairment charge related to its TV networks unit following the loss of a key media rights deal with the NBA.

It was a similar story for Paramount, which said Thursday it took a nearly $6 billion write-down on the value of its cable business, citing "recent indicators in the linear affiliate marketplace."

The back-to-back moves highlight the struggles within the industry as more consumers cut the cord and companies focus their efforts on streaming. But that undertaking has proven to be quite challenging.

And while Paramount — along with Disney (DIS) — reported a profitable quarter for its streaming unit this week, investor skepticism over the industry's path forward remains clear.

All three stocks are down year to date against an 11% gain for the S&P 500 (^GSPC). Over the last year, Warner Bros. stock is down 50% while Paramount has lost a third of its value.

For years, linear advertising and affiliate fees had consistently boosted revenues for these networks. The shifting to streaming saw cable subscribers decline, hurting affiliate fees, and streaming companies now entering the ad market have taken another leg out of the stool.

"The timing of these impairment charges comes as Paramount and Warner are under increased strain from their outsized debt loads," Third Bridge analyst Jamie Lumley wrote in an email to Yahoo Finance. "The impact to their tax obligations is certainly a factor as both companies look for any opportunity to stabilize their balance sheets."

Lumley continued, "The writing has been on the wall that cable businesses are not going to recover from their revenue and profitability slides."

KeyBanc analyst Brandon Nispel added recent strategies from Paramount and others seem "to center around shrinking to survive, where the potential growth of the business is likely to be challenged."

Rumors have swirled when it comes to future strategic options, which could include sales and splits. Paramount, for its part, is currently going through the process of being acquired by Skydance, with the company saying this week it expects the deal to close in the second quarter of next year.

And with impairment charges making the financing demands of a takeout lower, perhaps now is the time for these companies to start cleaning up their balance sheets.

Read more here.

The challenging economics of churning out quality TV shows and movies amid increasing competition in the streaming world has meant years of losses for entertainment giants. But this week both Paramount (PARA) and Disney (DIS) revealed for the first time that their streaming arms are profitable.

Disney on Wednesday reported that its total streaming division turned a profit and that it remains on track for streaming profitability to improve in the fourth quarter, with both DTC entertainment and ESPN+ expected to generate a positive income.

"We continue to feel optimistic about our trajectory, with multiple building blocks for improving margins over the coming years," the company said in its earnings release.

A day later, Paramount reported a profit within its streaming division.

But, as Yahoo Finance's Allie Canal reports, both companies also revealed some weaknesses in their respective businesses.

Paramount's streaming news came amid an announcement that the company plans to lay off 15% of its US workforce. And revenue in the film division faced its own double-digit decline, falling 18%.

Disney, for its part, disclosed softness in its parks division, noting a "moderation of consumer demand" toward the end of the quarter.

Here are some of the stocks leading Yahoo Finance’s trending tickers page during morning trading on Friday:

Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM): Shares of the chipmaker rose 0.8% Friday morning after the company revealed sales rose 45% year-over-year in July as demand for AI chips continues to flourish. The company is a supplier for Nvidia (NVDA), which has also seen its shares move slightly higher Friday.

Unity Software (U): The software developer rose nearly 13% after the company posted revenue that beat expectations and a smaller than expected quarterly loss.

Expedia (EXPE): Shares of the travel booking site rose nearly 9% Friday morning after posting second quarter results beat expectations on both the top and bottom line with an adjusted earnings per share of $3.51 against an expected $3.12. CEO Ariane Gorin issued a warning, however, saying in the release that "in July, we have seen a more challenging macro environment and a softening in travel demand." As a result, the company was adjusting its expectations for the rest of the year."

e.l.f. beauty (ELF): The cometics brand shed 15% on Friday morning, despite its Q1 results beating expectations on both the top and bottom lines. Investors instead focused on the company's full-year guidance, which warned that transportation costs could be a headwind for the company.

If inflation readings continue to show encouraging results the Fed may soon cut interest rates, said Boston Fed President Susan Collins in an interview with the Providence Journal.

“If the data continue the way that I expect, I do believe that it will be appropriate soon to begin adjusting policy and easing how restrictive the policy is,” Collins said. “My outlook is for continued gradual reduction back to our 2% target amid a healthy labor market.”

Collins' remarks come amid strong expectations from market observers that the Fed will lower rates at the next policy meeting in mid-September.

According to CME FedWatch, the majority of traders are pricing in a cut of 50 basis points.

The recent urgency to cut rates comes amid a weakening jobs market and a sense that the Fed may have waited too long to back off from its tightening policy decisions. The latest jobs figures came in weaker than expected, prompting many to call for more forceful cuts.

The July jobs report showed the unemployment rate rose to 4.3%, the highest level in years. And the recent market turmoil also heightened calls for the Fed to act sooner rather than later, to avoid a potential worsening of the labor market.

Former President Donald Trump said he would like a "say" in setting interest rates if he is reelected, further raising the prospect that the Republican nominee could seek to reduce the independence of the Federal Reserve if he wins in November.

"I feel the president should have at least say in there, yeah, I feel that strongly," the presidential candidate said Thursday in response to a question about the US central bank interest rate policy and the prospects of a soft landing for the US economy.

Yahoo Finance's Ben Werschkul reports that Trump's comments were the strongest indication yet that Trump does, in fact, want some direct involvement with the central bank operations if he were to reach the Oval Office again.

The remarks came after allies of the former president have floated a series of ideas in recent months that could undercut an independent Federal Reserve, ranging from firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to a plan first reported in the Wall Street Journal that would have the president himself playing a role in setting interest rates.

Trump has previously said he thinks he has the authority to fire the Federal Reserve chair, though some legal experts disagree.

Wall Street was poised to end the week in the red after opening trades on Friday sent stocks slightly lower, capping a series of sessions that suffered through the worst rout of the year, and when Wall Street's "fear gauge" — the CBOE Volatility Index (^VIX) — soared to its highest levels since the throes of the pandemic. US stocks wavered at the opening bell Friday as Wall Street looked to end a volatile week on a high note.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) sank 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) slumped 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) edged lower by 0.2%.