The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained, while the Dow Jones retreated on Friday as the March report largely met market projections, amid concerns over a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran.
As of 9:56 a.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 rose 0.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.6%.aligned with expectations.
At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 13.6 points, or 0.03%, to 48,199.39. The S&P 500 rose 14.6 points, or 0.21%, to 6,839.24, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 91.5 points, or 0.40%, to 22,913.91.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) surged at the fastest rate in nearly four years, driven primarily by an unprecedented spike in gas costs. However, core inflation—a metric the Federal Reserve tracks closely because it excludes volatile food and energy prices—remained relatively stable.
“There are no signs, yet, that high energy prices are seeping into core inflation,” said Brian Jacobsen at Annex Wealth Management, according to Bloomberg.
“That could be a process that plays out over time as companies absorb the brunt of the blow, at least initially,” added Jacobsen.
Consumer sentiment slumped 10.7% in April, according to a closely watched monthly survey from the University of Michigan.
Crude oil valuations were stable as the geopolitical outlook in West Asia stayed clouded by uncertainty.
Brent crude rose 0.1% to $96 a barrel. US crude futures rose 0.4% to $98.27 per barrel.
While American and Iranian diplomats prepared for high-level discussions scheduled for Saturday, Iran’s state-linked Tasnim news agency reported that the meeting was in jeopardy. The agency claimed negotiations would not proceed unless Israel halted its military strikes in Lebanon.
Meanwhile, equity markets across Asia and Europe saw gains during Friday’s trading session.
Key Stock Movers
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.31% from 4.29% late on Thursday.
CoreWeave shares surged 6.8% after the firm announced a multi-year agreement with Anthropic.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s US-listed shares rose 2.7% after the chipmaker beat market forecasts for first quarter revenue.
Shares of Nvidia rose 2.4% and Broadcom soared 4.9%.
Bullion Market
edged higher on Friday as the US dollar weakened following the shaky US-Iran truce.
As of 9:29 a.m. ET (1329 GMT), spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,778.89 per ounce. US gold futures fell 0.3% to $4,804.00.
Among other metals, spot silver surged 1.7% to $76.34 per ounce, platinum lost 2.5% to $2,050.99, and palladium fell 2.5% to $1,518.66.