U.S. stock futures were mixed on Friday, as the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 fell, and the Dow Jones index gained, following a mixed close on Thursday.
Following an Oval Office coal policy announcement, President Donald Trump stated he would consider meeting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei if diplomacy progresses.
“If we make a deal, it’s possible that I would meet,” Trump said. “I’d be okay with that.” His comments come amid mixed signals from negotiations as the U.S.-Iran conflict enters its fourth month under a fragile ceasefire.
Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.46%, and the two-year bond was at 4.03%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 96.4% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during June’s meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | 0.06% |
| S&P 500 | -0.53% |
| Nasdaq 100 | -1.09% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.63% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were lower in premarket on Friday. The SPY was down 0.47% at $753.51, while the QQQ declined by 1.04% to $732.91.
Sectors on the S&P 500 closed mostly higher, with health care, financials, and communication services stocks recording the biggest gains on Thursday, while information technology and consumer staples stocks closed the session lower.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | 1.73% | 51,561.93 |
| S&P 500 | 0.41% | 7,584.31 |
| Nasdaq Composite | -0.086% | 26,830.96 |
| Russell 2000 | 1.45% | 2,935.33 |
Scott Wren, Senior Global Market Strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, warned that a “performance roller coaster ride” is underway across the U.S. stock market and economy. Triggered by U.S. military action against Iran, extreme volatility has gripped stocks, oil prices, and Treasury yields.
Wren highlights that while the S&P 500 continuously hits record highs, intense “churn” persists beneath the surface. A prime example is the Information Technology sector, which surged 45.2% in the second quarter after a poor first-quarter showing.
On the economic front, supply restrictions threaten to worsen global crude shortages by summer. Consequently, Wren cautions that “the longer the diplomatic impasse is drawn out over the next month or two, the more persistent U.S. and global inflation should be.”
Failing negotiations could also push the 10-year Treasury yield significantly higher than its current 4.45%.
Even if a peace agreement is reached immediately, Wren believes “inflation figures to be part of the outlook for the rest of the year.” To navigate this environment, he advises investors to target sectors capable of passing higher input costs to customers, favoring Utilities, Industrials, Financials, and Aerospace & Defense.
Here's what investors will be keeping an eye on Friday.
Crude oil futures were trading lower in the early New York session by 0.27% to hover around $92.79 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar fell 0.28% to hover around $4,463.03 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.17% lower at the 99.2430 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 1.71% lower at $62,433.41 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed lower on Friday, as Hong Kong's Hang Seng, India’s Nifty 50, Japan's Nikkei 225, Australia's ASX 200, South Korea's Kospi, and China’s CSI 300 indices fell. European markets were mixed in early trade.
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