In This Article:
Markets faltered on Friday, with Wall Street reeling as investors hurried to shed risk in the face of mounting inflation and tariff uncertainties.
The S&P 500 fell 2.1% by 1:30 p.m. trading in New York, on track to end the week with losses. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 tumbled 2.6%, and the Dow fell 1.7%.
All members of the Magnificent Seven group were in the red, with Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) marking the widest drops, both down 4.4%.
Earlier on Friday, the Fed's favorite inflation gauge – the core Personal Consumption Expenditure price index – rose 2.8% on a yearly basis in February, surprising estimates of 2.7%.
Investor anxiety deepened following the latest University of Michigan Survey of Consumers, which showed 5-year forward inflation expectations jumping to 4.1% — a 0.2-point increase from prior estimates and the highest reading since February 1993. As stocks fell in unison, a flight to safety ensued, sending gold up 1% to a record-breaking $3,090 per ounce. Treasury bonds also rallied, with yields declining across all maturities.
Price action in commodities was mixed with oil down 1% and natural gas up 2.4%. Sentiment in crypto also took a sharp hit, with Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) down by 4% to below $84,000, flipping to weekly losses.
Friday's Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs
| Major Indices | Price | Chg % |
| Dow Jones | 41,597.02 | -1.7% |
| S&P 500 | 5,574.84 | -2.1% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,016.62 | -2.3% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 19,283.98 | -2.6% |
Updated at 1:20 p.m. ET
According to Benzinga Pro data:
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The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) fell 2.1% to $555.41.
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The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE:DIA) eased 1.8% to $415.31.
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The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series (NASDAQ:QQQ) dropped 2.7% to $468.61.
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The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) fell 2.5% to $199.57
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The Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) outperformed, up 0.9%; the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) lagged, down 3.2%.
Friday’s Stock Movers
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Shares of Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) sunk 15% in reaction to the company’s earnings report.
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Michigan-based automakers extended losses as investors asses the impact from tariffs. General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) fell 2% following a nearly 6% drop on Thursday. Ford Motor. Co. (NYSE:F) fell 2.7% after a 3.9% drop a day earlier.
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Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) erased Thursday’s gains and fell 3.5%.
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Crypto-related stocks plummeted, with Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) down nearly 10%. Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) fell over 7%, heading for the lowest close since mid-October 2024.
