Banks unexpectedly led the Friday rally, while technology stocks also helped the market recover from a 251-point beating on Thursday, attributed largely to a trader revolt against the Federal Reserve failing to provide another round of quantitative easing stimulus.

"It reminded me of a 3-year-old screaming for candy," said Keith Springer, president of Springer Financial Advisory in Sacramento, Calif. "The market is addicted to stimulus. The economy's clearly slowing down because the last QE program is winding down and you can feel the effects are wearing off."

Thursday was the market's second drop in excess of 250 points this month and the second worst loss of the year.

The Dow and Standard & Poor's 500 both finished off mildly for the week while the Nasdaq rose a shade.

The week's action left some market participants concerned that stocks were likely to swish around until more visibility emerges about the future of the European debt crisis and the dangers of the fiscal cliffin Washington.