Wall Street witnessed a relatively timid trading session on Friday, with major indices showing a slight dip in performance. While semiconductor stocks saw a modest rebound, fueled by NVIDIA Corp.’s (NVDA) pause in the previous session’s sell-off, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged lower after achieving record highs the day before. This weak risk sentiment threatens to end the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100’s streak of three consecutive weekly rallies.
The AI darling, NVIDIA, rose by 1% in midday trading in New York, contributing to the positive momentum in chipmakers. This was further bolstered by strong earnings reports from Marvell Technology Inc. (MRVL) and MongoDB Inc. (MDB).
On the data front, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Price Index, remained flat in July, breaking a three-month streak of declines. While the index came in slightly below expectations of an increase, personal spending and income data accelerated more than anticipated, indicating that the positive momentum among U.S. consumers extended into the first month of the current quarter.
The dollar gained 0.3% on the back of this economic data, as traders trimmed their expectations for a large 50-basis-point rate cut in September. The greenback’s strength pressured commodities: gold dropped 0.7%, while oil declined by 2.7%. Sentiment in the cryptocurrency market remained negative, with Bitcoin (BTC/USD) down 2.3%.
Here’s a breakdown of the major indices’ performance:
*
Nasdaq 100:
19,367.31 (+0.2%)*
S&P 500:
5,588.51 (-0.1%)*
Dow Jones:
41,177.11 (-0.4%)*
Russell 2000:
2,192.94 (-0.4%)According to Benzinga Pro data, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 0.1% to $557.38. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA) fell 0.4% to $412.33. The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series (QQQ) was up 0.1% to $470.97. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) fell 0.6% to $217.58.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) outperformed, up by 0.1%, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) lagged, down by 0.7%.
Individual stock performances included:
*
Marvell Technology Inc.:
+9.1%*
MongoDB Inc.:
+16%*
Autodesk, Inc.:
+1.7%*
Dell Technologies Inc.:
+3%*
Elastic N.V.:
-27%*
Lululemon Athletica Inc.:
-0.7%*
Ulta Beauty, Inc.:
-4.3%*
Intel Corp.:
+7.7% (following rumors of potential separation of its product design and manufacturing divisions)The market’s direction remains uncertain as investors navigate various economic and geopolitical factors. The upcoming week will likely see further volatility, with key economic releases and earnings reports scheduled.
