Major Averages Turn In Another Mixed Performance

After ending Thursday’s session on opposite sides of the unchanged line, the major U.S. stock indexes turned in another mixed performance during trading on Friday. While the tech-heavy Nasdaq added to yesterday’s strong gain, the Dow extended its losing streak to five sessions.

The Nasdaq reached a new record intraday high in early trading but gave back ground over the course of the session before ending the day up 103.12 points or 0.6 percent at 18,518.61.

Meanwhile, the Dow slid 259.96 points or 0.6 percent to 42,114.40, pulling back well off last Friday’s record closing high. The S&P 500 also edged down 1.74 points or less than tenth of a percent to 5,808.12.

The major averages also turned in a mixed performance for the week. The Dow tumbled by 2.7 percent and the S&P 500 slumped by 1.0 percent, but the Nasdaq rose by 0.2 percent.

Stocks moved mostly higher early in the session, with the major averages all moving to the upside amid ongoing optimism about the outlook for the economy.

Adding to the economic optimism, the University of Michigan released revised data showing consumer sentiment unexpectedly improved in the month of October.

The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index for October was upwardly revised to 70.5 from a preliminary reading of 68.9. Economists had expected the index to be upwardly revised slightly to 69.0.

With the bigger than expected upward revision, the consumer sentiment index is now modestly above the final September reading of 70.1.

The consumer sentiment index has now increased for the third consecutive month, reaching its highest level since hitting 77.2 in April.

Buying interest waned over the course of the session, however, as treasury yields rebounded following yesterday’s pullback amid lingering concerns the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates slower than previously anticipated.

The Fed is still widely expected to lower rates by a quarter point next month, but CME Group’s FedWatch Tool currently indicates a 24.0 percent chance the central bank will leave rates unchanged in December.

The extended losing streak by the Dow came amid notable declines by shares of McDonald’s (MCD), Dow Inc. (DOW) and Travelers (TRV).

Sector News

Airline stocks showed a substantial rebound after falling sharply on Thursday, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index surging by 2.0 percent.

A sharp increase by the price of crude oil also contributed to significant strength among oil service stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.

On the other hand, gold stocks came under pressure despite a modest increase by the price of the precious metal, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 2.1 percent.

Interest rate-sensitive utilities and housing stocks also saw notable weakness amid lingering concerns about the outlook for rates.

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 slid by 0.6 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed by 0.6 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets ended the day narrowly mixed. While the German DAX Index crept up by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index edged down by 0.1 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.3 percent

In the bond market, treasuries moved to the downside over the course of the session after showing a lack of direction in early trading. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, climbed 3.2 basis points to 4.232 percent.

Looking Ahead

Next week’s trading is likely to be driven by reaction to the monthly jobs report as well as a report on personal income and spending that includes the Fed’s preferred inflation readings.

Reports on consumer confidence, pending home sales and manufacturing sector activity may also attract some attention.

Earnings news is also likely to be in focus, with Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Exxon Mobil (XOM), Intel (INTC), McDonald’s (MCD), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT) and Pfizer (PFE) among the companies due to report their quarterly results.