Emotions ran bearish on Friday as the Dow and Nasdaq tumbled by triple digits each, while the S&P 500 experienced its third consecutive daily decline. The week concluded with all three major indexes closing lower, prompted by higher-than-anticipated inflation figures just before the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates, putting substantial pressure on tech stocks and dashing hopes of a rate decrease. Despite a slight increase in the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) on the day, there was also a weekly downturn.
Investors can engage in more insights into today’s market situation, such as:
- A boost in pharmaceutical stocks following FDA approval.
- Reasons why traders should consider buying Molson Coors calls.
- A weekly recap, a positive note on an EV stock, and a technological outage affecting McDonald’s.
Key Updates for Today
- Geron (GERN) stock saw a surge after a positive FDA vote for the blood-disorder drug imetelstat. (Source: MarketWatch)
- Apple (AAPL) settled a lawsuit with a $490 million agreement to resolve claims of CEO Tim Cook defrauding shareholders. (Source: CNBC)
- A review of this week’s noteworthy stories in retail and tech.
- An analyst expresses optimism on an electric vehicle (EV) stock.
- A global tech outage contributed to a decline in McDonald’s stock prices.
Oil Market Resilience: A Weekly Gain Despite Daily Setbacks
Despite a decline in oil prices on Friday, the market maintained a weekly gain of approximately 3%. The positive trajectory was supported by lower U.S. crude inventories, an optimistic demand forecast, and the persisting Russia-Ukraine conflict. The April WTI price fell by 22 cents, or 0.3%, to reach $81.26 per barrel on the day.
Meanwhile, gold prices faced a dip, marking their first weekly decline after four weeks of gains. Investors’ sentiment shifted as optimism for interest rate cuts waned following a strong producer price index (PPI) report. The price of April gold fell by $5.70, or 0.5%, to $2,167.50 per ounce, culminating in an overall 0.8% decrease for the week.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
