WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Friday, regaining ground after coming under pressure over the course of the previous session. The major averages have all moved to the upside, with tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the advance.
In recent trading, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 have reached new highs for the session. The Nasdaq is up 155.67 points or 0.9 percent at 16,891.70 and the S&P 500 is up 33.91 points or 0.6 percent at 5,301.85.
The narrower Dow is posting a more modest gain, up 80.08 points or 0.2 percent at 39,145.34, after underperforming on Thursday.
The rebound on Wall Street comes as traders look to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels following the downturn seen in the previous session, which saw the Dow post its worst daily drop since March 2023.
The weakness that emerged on Wall Street on Thursday came as a positive reaction to earnings news from Nvidia (NVDA) was overshadowed by lingering concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department released a report showing an unexpected increase in durable goods orders in the month of April, although the growth came following a significantly downwardly revised jump in March.
The report said durable goods orders climbed by 0.7 percent in April following a downwardly revised 0.8 percent advance in March.
Economist had expected durable goods orders to decrease by 0.8 percent compared to the 2.6 percent surge originally reported for the previous month.
Excluding orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders rose by 0.4 percent in April after coming in unchanged in March. Ex-transportation orders were expected to inch up by 0.1 percent.
A separate report released by the University of Michigan showed consumer sentiment in the U.S. deteriorated slightly less than previously estimated in the month of May.
The report said the consumer sentiment index for May was upwardly revised to 69.1 from the preliminary reading of 67.4. Economists had expected the index to be unrevised.
Despite the upward revision, the consumer sentiment index still fell sharply from 77.2 in April, slumping to its lowest level since hitting 61.3 last November.
Meanwhile, the report showed year-ahead inflation expectations increased by much less than previously estimated, inching up to 3.3 percent in May from 3.2 percent in April.
The University of Michigan had previously reported year-ahead inflation expectations jumped to 3.5 percent, although the downwardly revised figure still represents the highest level since hitting 4.5 percent last November.
The revised data also showed long-run inflation expectations held steady at 3.0 percent for the second straight month compared to the previously reported uptick to 3.1 percent.
Sector News
Computer hardware stocks are seeing substantial strength on the day, resulting in a 2.0 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.
Semiconductor and networking stocks have also shown strong moves to the upside, contributing to the advance by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Gold stocks are also seeing considerable strength, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index rebounding by 1.7 percent after falling sharply lower over the past few sessions.
Notable strength is also visible among brokerage and housing stocks, while most of the other major sectors are showing more modest moves.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved notably lower during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index dove by 1.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slumped by 0.9 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the downside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index iare both down by 0.3 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are showing a lack of direction after trending lower over the past several sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 4.479 percent.
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