NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stock markets ended the week mixed on Friday, following Wednesday's first Fed rate hike in three years.
Investors and traders remain nervous that additional hikes will follow. "Some uncertainty was removed this week when the Fed hiked rates," Scott Welch, chief investment officer at Certuity told CNBC on Friday.
"At some point, whether it's October or after the elections, I think the Fed will hike at least one more time in 2026 and probably another time or two in 2027," he said.
Welch said he believes the pressure on U.S. Treasury yields will continue to be up. He also anticipates that oil prices, hovering around $100 a barrel on Friday, will remain elevated for the next few months.
"While I'm not bearish on the market, I do think we're kind of in a chug-along environment for the rest of this year," Welch said.
The Standard and Poor's 500 closed at 7,650.16 points on Friday, up 12.40 points or 0.16 percent, on volume of 4.958B. The benchmark traded between 7,610.52 and 7,657.17 during the session, against a 52-week range of 6,316.91 to 7,816.70.
The NASDAQ Composite was the day's best performer among the major U.S. indices, finishing at 26,522.54, a gain of 104.25 points or 0.39 percent, on volume of 7.488B. It ranged from 26,333.98 to 26,544.93, within a yearly band of 20,690.25 to 27,190.21.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lagged its peers, closing at 51,681.51, down 96.53 points or 0.19 percent, on volume of 722.416M. The blue-chip index moved between 51,497.47 and 51,826.78, against a 52-week range of 45,057.28 to 54,744.33.
Market participants attributed the divergence to rotation into growth and technology names, which supported the Nasdaq and the S&P 500, while cyclical and industrial components of the Dow weighed on that index.
U.S. Dollar Slips Against Most Major Currencies Friday, Flat Versus Loonie
The U.S. dollar weakened against nearly every major currency in Friday's foreign exchange trading, with the lone exception of the Japanese yen. The greenback was little changed against its Canadian counterpart.
The euro strengthened against the dollar, with EUR-USD last quoted at 1.1487, a gain of 0.10 percent for the single currency.
The British pound also advanced, as GBP-USD stood at 1.3395, up 0.27 percent.
The Australian dollar posted a solid session, with AUD-USD at 0.7126, a rise of 0.21 percent.
The Swiss franc was the standout performer among the majors, as USD-CHF fell to 0.8220, a decline of 0.32 percent for the dollar — the largest move of the day against the greenback.
The Canadian dollar was the exception to the dollar's broad weakness, with USD-CAD unchanged at 1.3991, a move of 0.00 percent.
The Japanese yen was the only currency to lose ground to the dollar, as USD-JPY climbed to 156.73, a gain of 0.49 percent for the greenback — its strongest advance of the session.
Investors and traders pointed to a softer tone in U.S. yields and continued appetite for risk-linked currencies as the main drivers behind the dollar's broadly weaker finish, while the yen's slide reflected lingering expectations of continued monetary policy divergence in Tokyo.
Global Stock Markets End Mixed Friday as Asia Rallies, Europe Slips
World stock markets closed Friday's session with a split verdict, as strong gains across Asia and the Pacific contrasted with a broadly weaker showing in Canada, the UK, and Europe.
In Canada, the S&P/TSX Composite index finished lower, closing at 35,804.68, a decline of 69.58 points or 0.19 percent, on volume of 620.714M. It traded between 35,650.43 and 35,864.96 during the session.
The FTSE 100 in London closed at 10,659.13, down 29.37 points, a decline of 0.27 percent. It had traded as high as 10,815.94 and as low as 10,650.16 on the day, against a 52-week range of 9,177.10 to 10,989.50.
In Europe, the region's major benchmarks finished in the red. Germany's DAX P was the weakest of the major European indices, ending at 25,304.06, a drop of 412.65 points or 1.60 percent. Its session range ran from 25,285.90 to 25,656.22, within a yearly band of 21,863.81 to 26,618.74.
In Paris, the CAC 40 settled at 8,065.02, down 75.57 points or 0.93 percent. The index moved between 8,046.04 and 8,161.07, against a 52-week range of 7,505.27 to 8,755.03.
The EURO STOXX 50 I closed at 6,236.20, losing 86.70 points or 1.37 percent. It traded between 6,223.12 and 6,329.24, with a yearly range of 5,376.81 to 6,577.20.
The Euronext 100 Index ended at 1,881.16, down 5.92 points or 0.31 percent, having moved between 1,874.50 and 1,900.84 during the session. Its 52-week range stands at 1,628.22 to 1,984.60.
Brussels' BEL 20 closed at 5,713.16, a loss of 20.33 points or 0.35 percent. The index traded between 5,706.70 and 5,767.97, within a yearly range of 4,631.38 to 5,905.83.
Asia provided the counterweight. Hong Kong's HANG SENG INDEX finished at 24,750.78, up 36.98 points or 0.15 percent. It ranged from 24,703.92 to 24,862.98, against a 52-week band of 22,518.00 to 28,056.10.
On the Chinese mainland, the SSE Composite Index rose to 3,911.87, up 36.27 points or 0.94 percent on volume of 1.327B. It ranged from 3,888.50 to 3,919.67 during the session, within a 52-week band of 3,741.11 to 4,258.86.
Japan's Nikkei 225 closed at 65,018.95, up 882.75 points or 1.38 percent. The index traded between 64,403.85 and 65,436.57, against a yearly range of 44,357.65 to 72,831.73.
In Singapore on Friday, the STI Index closed essentially flat at 5,656.11, down 4.41 points or 0.08 percent. It traded between 5,621.76 and 5,661.82, with a yearly range of 4,264.99 to 5,828.50.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 [XJO] rose to 8,731.20, up 34.70 points or 0.40 percent, moving between 8,717.00 and 8,771.60 on the day. The ALL ORDINARIES [XAO] gained 48.20 points or 0.54 percent to close at 8,922.70, within a session range of 8,904.60 to 8,955.40.
New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS gained 116.44 points or 0.85 percent to close at 13,739.14, moving between 13,643.03 and 13,801.29.
India's S&P BSE SENSEX ended at 74,294.96, down 41.54 points or 0.06 percent. It touched a session high of 74,728.44 and a low of 74,294.96, against a 52-week range of 71,545.81 to 86,159.02.
In Indonesia, the IDX COMPOSITE closed at 6,441.16, up 4.31 points or 0.07 percent, trading between 6,419.50 and 6,521.02.
Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI fell to 1,665.56, down 13.65 points or 0.81 percent, with a session range of 1,661.79 to 1,677.83.
In South Korea, the KOSPI Composite Index was one of the day's strongest performers, surging 178.82 points or 2.66 percent to 6,894.23 on volume of 346,807. It traded between 6,830.95 and 6,914.08, against a 52-week range of 3,365.73 to 9,385.59.
Taiwan's TSEC CAPITALIZATION WEIGHTED ST posted the biggest gain, jumping 1,331.85 points or 2.90 percent to 47,180.75, its session high and a level within a yearly range of 25,469.04 to 48,218.87.
Most Middle East markets were closed on Friday and will reopen on Sunday. Israel's TA-125, which began trading on Fridays this year, was unchanged at 4,164.35. It traded between 4,138.38 and 4,175.98, within a 52-week range of 3,023.40 to 4,588.51.
South Africa's Top 40 USD Net TRI Index closed at 6,938.28, down 102.64 points or 1.46 percent, against a yearly range of 6,033.45 to 8,184.71.
Analysts attributed the regional divergence to differing rate expectations and currency moves, with Asian exporters benefiting from a softer yen and firm technology demand, while European industrials and luxury names weighed on the continent's benchmarks.
(This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence).
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