WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Friday, largely offsetting the weakness seen in the previous session. With the rebound on the day, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has reached a new record intraday high.
Currently, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 are just off their highs of the session. The Nasdaq is up 236.90 points or 1 percent at 24,675.40 and the S&P 500 is up 29.00 points or 0.4 percent at 7,137.40.
The narrower Dow, on the other hand, has bucked the uptrend and is down 143.33 points or 0.3 percent at 49,166.99 amid steep losses by Merck (MRK) and Honeywell (HON).
The rebound by the broader markets comes amid a spike by shares of Intel (INTC), with the semiconductor giant soaring by more than 23 percent to a record intraday high.
Intel is skyrocketing the chipmaker reported much better than expected first quarter earnings and forecast second quarter revenues above analyst estimates.
Consumer products giant Procter & Gamble (PG) has also shown a significant move to the upside after reporting fiscal third quarter results that exceeded expectations.
Buying interest has also be generated in reaction to a pullback by the price of crude oil, which is giving back ground after skyrocketing over the past few sessions.
U.S. crude oil futures are slumping by 1 percent after a report from Reuters said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will arrive in Pakistan tonight for peace talks with the U.S.
President Donald Trump's announcement of a three-week extension of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is also weighing on crude oil prices.
Sector News
Semiconductor stocks have moved sharply higher amid the spike by Intel, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surging by 3.6 percent to a new record intraday high.
Considerable strength is also visible among gold stocks amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 1.8 percent.
Computer hardware and oil service stocks are also seeing notable strength, while pharmaceutical and healthcare stocks have shown significant moves to the downside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped by 0.3 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index is just below the unchanged line, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.5 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.7 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are regaining ground after coming under pressure over the course of the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 1.5 basis points at 4.308 percent.
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