The S&P 500 (TIKER: SPX.INDEX) ended a 0.61% lower on Friday as investors braced for potential damage from Hurricane Irma as it continues to approach Florida, Reuters reports.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 189.77 (1.17%) points for the week due to a decline in big tech names like Apple (TIKER: APC.XETRA) and Facebook (TIKER: FB2A.XETRA).
Shares of major insurance companies fell in days ahead of Hurricane Irma's landfall in Florida, but managed to clinch a solid rebound Friday afternoon.
XL Group and RenaissanceRe (TIKER: RNR.NYSE) traded 5.8% and 4.13% higher, respectively.
Whereas home improvement and materials companies surged drastically: Home Depot climbed 1.10% and Lowe's added 1.13%on Friday, while Lumber Liquidators' stock added another 1.94% to its weekly gains.
Irma was downgraded from a category 5 to a category 4 hurricane early on Friday but according to U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) it is still capable of "devastating" parts of the country.
Oil prices slid too with U.S. crude down more than 3% on worries that commerce and energy demand in Florida and the Southeast would be hit hard as Hurricane Irma.