WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the lackluster performance seen in the previous session, stocks moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 moved to the downside, although the narrower Dow managed to post a modest gain.
While the Dow inched up 34.86 points or 0.1 percent to 44,946.12, the S&P 500 fell 18.74 points or 0.3 percent to 6,449.80 and the Nasdaq slid 87.69 points or 0.4 percent to 21,622.98.
Despite the lower close on the day, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 advanced by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively, for the week. The Dow also posted a strong weekly gain of 1.7 percent.
The weakness in the broader markets came following the release of mixed batch of U.S. economic data, which has led to some uncertainty about the outlook for the economy and interest rates.
While the Commerce Department released a report showing retail sales increased in line with economist estimates in July, the University of Michigan released a separate report showing an unexpected deterioration in consumer sentiment in August.
The Commerce Department said retail sales climbed by 0.5 percent in July after jumping by an upwardly revised 0.9 percent in June.
Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.5 percent compared to the 0.6 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.
Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in July after growing by 0.8 percent in June. The increase in ex-auto sales also matched expectations.
Meanwhile, the University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index fell to 58.6 in August from 61.7 in July. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 62.0.
On the inflation front, year-ahead inflation expectations jumped to 4.9 percent in August from 4.5 in July, reflecting increases across multiple demographic groups and all three political affiliations.
Long-run inflation expectations also surged to 3.9 percent in August from 3.4 percent in July, rebounding following three straight months of decreases.
A separate report released by the Labor Department showed import prices in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of July, while the Federal Reserve released a report showing a slight pullback by industrial production in July.
Sector News
Semiconductor stocks turned in some of the market's worst performances on the day, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index tumbling by 2.3 percent.
Considerable weakness was also visible among banking stocks, as reflected by the 2.0 percent slump by the KBW Bank Index.
Oil service and steel stocks also saw notable weakness on the day, while healthcare, pharmaceutical and biotechnology stocks showed strong moves to the upside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 1.7 percent to a record closing high, while China's Shanghai Composite Index advanced by 0.8 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index climbed by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.4 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are extending the downward move seen in the previous session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose 3.5 basis points to 4.328 percent.
Looking Ahead
Housing data may attract attention next week along with remarks by central bank officials at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium.
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