Wall Street coasted to the finish of its best week in the last five on Friday as U.S. stocks hung near their record levels.

U.S. inflation, as measured by the consumer-price index, rose 0.4% in August at an annual rate of 2.9%. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, was up 3.1% in the 12 months through ...

Fitch Ratings downgraded the French government’s credit rating on Friday, days after the ousting of the country’s prime minister who failed in his bid to bring down the ballooning budget deficit.