EDITOR'S NOTE
When markets are idle, retail investors get busy.
The S&P 500 rose 0.1% to end the day at 4,200.88, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 141.59 points to reach 34,464.64. The Nasdaq Composite was the laggard of the three indexes, just slightly below flat.
At least some of that quiet can be attributed to traders punching out a little early as the Memorial Day holiday weekend approaches.
“Equity markets are quiet as investors continue to anticipate the Fed’s next move,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide. “Low volatility and low trading volume are a frequent occurrence in the week leading into a holiday.”
Sleepy markets notwithstanding, meme stock aficionados ran up AMC Entertainment, pushing the movie theater operator’s share price higher by 35.6%. The stock has risen 119.5% for the week. 
GameStop, another Reddit darling, rose about 4.8%. The brick-and-mortar gaming retailer is up 43.7% for the week.
Investors are also banking on getting outside more, as stocks linked to travel and leisure enjoyed a bump. Royal Caribbean surged nearly 2.5%, while United Airlines jumped 1.9%.
Choosing to keep it relatively local this summer? You’re likely to pay more at the pump. Memorial Day gas prices are the highest they’ve been in seven years.
"Usually when prices go up 50 cents, people say they’ll just stay home, but not this year, with the pent-up demand,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “If there’s any kinks in the system, it could get ugly.” TOP NEWS
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