Stocks wavered between slight gains and losses in early trading Friday, keeping major indexes on track to post big weekly gains for the third time in the last four weeks.
The S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite were each up 0.1% about half an hour into the trading session, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose fractionally. Stocks were coming off a mixed performance on Thursday, when the S&P 500 rose slightly to close higher for the fourth consecutive day, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite inched lower to snap a six-session winning streak.
Investor sentiment got a huge boost at the start of the week when the U.S. and China announced they had decided to slash the massive tariffs they had imposed on one another for a period of 90 days while the two countries negotiate a broader trade deal. Meantime, several economic indicators released this week have added to confidence that the U.S. economy remains on sound footing, though concerns remain about the potential impact of tariffs on growth and corporate profits.
Coming into Friday’s session, the Nasdaq had gained 6.6% so far this week as investor enthusiasm for tech stocks has been rejuvenated alongside a growing appetite for risk. The S&P 500 was up 4.5% for the week, while the Dow had tacked on 2.6%.
Mega-cap tech stocks were mixed in early trading. Alphabet (GOOG) was up 2% and Tesla (TSLA) added 1%, while Apple (AAPL), Nvidia (NVDA) and Amazon (AMZN) inched higher. Microsoft (MSFT), Meta Platforms (META) and Broadcom (AVGO) lost ground.
Shares of server maker Super Micro Computer (SMCI), which have risen nearly 40% this week, were up more than 6% this morning to lead S&P 500 gainers. Shares of chip designer Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), which have had a good week on news of deals and an expanded share buyback program, rose 2%. Applied Materials (AMAT) shares dropped more than 6% after the chip equipment manufacturer posted quarterly revenue below Wall Street expectations amid a slump in China sales.
Among other noteworthy movers, Novo Nordisk (NVO) shares dropped 4% on the surprise news that the CEO of the Danish pharmaceutical company, the maker of blockbuster weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, is stepping down. Shares of Charter Communications (CHTR) were up about 3% after the company struck a deal to acquire privately held rival Cox Communications in a deal that would combine two of the U.S.’s largest cable providers.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, notably mortgages, was at 4.40%, down from 4.46% late yesterday. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the performance of the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, was down 0.1% to 100.74.
Gold futures were down 1.2% at $3,190 an ounce, giving back most of yesterday’s gains. West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, rose 0.5% to $61.90 per barrel.
Bitcoin was at $103,900, little changed from its late-Thursday levels. The digital currency surged above $100,000 last week for the first time since February.
