S&P 500 Dow Jones Nasdaq Friday: U.S Stock Market on Friday: S&P 500, Dow Jones, Nasdaq to end week in high at Wall Street? Check share market forecast
Oil and Gold Prices
U.S. crude futures, which are lower for the week, jumped more than 2 per cent from Thursday’s close to $96.8 a barrel. Gold price was down by 0.08 per cent.
Iran-U.S. War
Iran’s top joint military command said the U.S. targeted an Iranian oil tanker and another ship entering the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. military said it acted in self-defence after Iran attacked Navy destroyers that were passing through the strait. It said Iran did not hit any U.S. assets in the attack and U.S. President Donald Trump told ABC News that the ceasefire with Iran remained in place.
The strikes occurred while Washington awaited Iran’s response to a U.S. proposal that would halt fighting but leave the most contentious issues, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, unresolved for now.
Foreign Exchange Markets
Nikkei futures pointed to a slightly lower open for Japanese shares, which soared to record highs on Thursday. In foreign exchange markets, the rising tension lifted the dollar off its recent lows and set it on course to finish the week mostly steady.
The yen has struggled to strengthen past 155 to the dollar, despite data suggesting that authorities in Tokyo may have sold as much as $67 billion in defence of the currency this week and last.
The yen last traded at 156.88 per dollar and the euro at $1.1726. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is due to visit Tokyo next week and markets will be on alert for any comments he might make on the yen or Japan’s monetary policy, given his past remarks in favour of speedier Japanese rate hikes.
U.S. Payroll Report
Investors await the U.S. non-farm payrolls report on Friday, with jobs expected to have increased in April by 62,000 after rebounding 178,000 in March, a Reuters survey of economists shows.
Bond Market
In the bond market, Treasury yields rose after oil prices pared their drops. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.38 per cent from 4.36 per cent late on Wednesday.
Higher yields can raise rates for mortgages and other kinds of loans going to U.S. households and businesses, which in turn can slow the economy. Higher yields also tend to push downward on prices for stocks and other kinds of investments.
The 10-year Treasury yield was at just 3.97 per cent before the war.
On Thursday, S&P 500 fell 0.4 per cent from its all-time high set the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 313 points, or 0.6 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.1 per cent from its own record. All told, the S&P 500 fell 28.01 points to 7,337.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 313.62 to 49,596.97, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 32.75 to 25,806.20.
Wall Street saw even sharper swings earlier in the war, when hopes rallied for a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, only to get quickly dashed. That could happen again. And Iran has created a government agency to vet and tax vessels seeking passage through the strait, a shipping data company reported Thursday, a move that could add to costs for fuel.
Despite all the uncertainties about the war, a powerful parade of U.S. companies reporting even bigger profits for the start of the year than analysts expected has helped support the U.S. stock market. Stock prices tend to follow the path of corporate profits over the long term.
