Stocks rose slightly on Friday, with the Nasdaq shaking off an Apple (AAPL)-led decline after officials suggested the Federal Reserve may refrain from raising interest rates at its September meeting.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained about 0.1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.2%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) gained about 0.1% as Apple shares recovered from a two-day slump that hit technology stocks.
However, all three indices ended the week with losses.
On Friday, investors weighed comments from several Fed policymakers that appeared to signal that they may refrain from further rate hikes this year. That optimism was reinforced by Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams, who said Thursday that U.S. monetary policy was “in good shape,” although he stressed that officials would be guided by economic data .
Inflation data is crucial to the Fed’s decision on whether to keep interest rates high for longer, and concerns are growing about rising energy prices and their potential to further perpetuate price pressures. The start of a strike at Chevron’s natural gas power plants in Australia – which supplies over 5% of the world’s LNG supply – was seen as a trigger for a rise in European gas futures (NG=F) on Friday. This follows a recent rise in oil prices (CL=F), which also raised concerns.
Reports of Chinese restrictions on iPhone use by government officials and state-owned companies sent Apple shares tumbling this week, losing nearly $200 billion in market value. The decline sent markets into disarray and particularly hit the iPhone maker’s Asian suppliers. Apple shares rose about 0.4% on Friday but lost about 6% for the week.
But with Apple just days away from releasing its next iPhone model, some analysts are sour on the stock – meaning the crash may not be over yet. At the same time, Samsung is positioning its new foldable Galaxy smartphones as key competitors to take market share from the iPhone.
The story goes on
Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including stock-moving events
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance