• Stocks closed a volatile month with strong gains on Friday on renewed bets the U.S. and China could strike a deal on trade.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 199.62 points to close at 25,538.46. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both gained 0.8 percent to close at 2,760.17 and 7,330.54, respectively. Stocks wobbled for most of the session until Reuters reported that a Chinese official said "consensus is steadily increasing" in U.S.-China trade talks. The official added, according to the report, that differences between the two countries remained.

• Heading into December, however, stocks could be in for more volatility, said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at Baird.

"We do not have evidence that a meaningful cyclical low is in place, and the character of any rally attempts that do emerge will be watch closely," Bittles said in a note. He added, however, stocks have historically done well in December.