U.S. stocks wavered at the open Friday, with some signs suggesting that indexes could wrap up the week on an upbeat note as technology stocks head for modest gains.
Load Error
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) added 0.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was little changed. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose by roughly 0.4%.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 3.437% from 3.397% Thursday. The dollar index added 0.4%, trading at $102.44 Friday morning.
Stocks extended a string of losses Thursday as investors dissected economic data and corporate earnings reports, clouding their views of the health of the U.S. economy.
Despite concerns about the economy, markets have been fairly resilient and moved mostly higher this year, according to the U.S. Market Intelligence team at JP Morgan. However, the team doesn’t believe a recession is currently priced in in equity markets.
“We do not agree with the argument that because a recession is consensus,” the team wrote, “The market and economic outcome have to be better.”
The S&P 500 is expected to report a year-over-year decline in earnings of 3.9% for the fourth quarter, according to data from FactSet Research. This would mark the first year-over-year decline in earnings reported by the index since 2020 if realized.
Wall Street navigated another round of data and Fedspeak on Thursday. Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said Thursday the central bank has more rate hikes ahead “to bring inflation down to our 2% goal on a sustained basis.”
Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard and Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Susan Collins expressed similar remarks Thursday ahead of the Fed’s next monetary policy meeting, which starts Jan. 31.
Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker repeated his view on Friday morning to shift to 25-basis-point rate hikes.
On the economic front, sales of previously owned US homes fell for the 11th consecutive month in December, extending the record decline further as high mortgage rates and limited inventory stifled affordability.
Contract closings decreased 1.5% from November’s reading, to an annualized pace of 4.02 million last month, according to data from the National Association of Realtors on Friday. The pace of purchases seasonally adjusted was 34% lower than December 2021, the slowest pace since November of 2010.
In corporate news, Netflix (NFLX) CEO Reed Hastings announced Thursday that he is stepping down. After a two-decade run, he’s leaving the streaming platform in the hands of co-CEO Ted Sarandos and COO Greg Peters after reporting a strong end of 2022.
© Provided by Yahoo Finance US
POLAND – 2023/01/19: In this photo illustration a Netflix logo is displayed on a smartphone with stock market percentages on the background. (Photo Illustration by Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
And the era of password sharing will soon end. The streaming giant will be enforcing password-sharing rules “more broadly” toward the end of the first quarter of 2023, Netflix announced in its earnings report on Thursday. Shares jumped nearly 6% Friday morning.
Google parent Alphabet Inc. (GOOG, GOOGL) said it’s laying off 12,000 workers, or more than 6% of its global workforce, becoming the latest tech company to trim staff after rapid expansions during the pandemic. Google parent Alphabet Inc. shares added 3% at the open.
In the commodities market, oil prices ticked up. Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose nearly 0.6% to $86.64 a barrel, and WTI, the US benchmark, added 0.5% to about $80.72. Both could end the week with another gain, driven by optimism about demand rebound in China.
Meanwhile, in the crypto market, Genesis Global Capital filed for bankruptcy protection late Thursday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The move comes after the company could not raise cash for its troubled lending unit and cut 30% of staff in a fresh round of layoffs in early January.
—
Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @daniromerotv
Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Download the Yahoo Finance app for Apple or Android
Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, and YouTube