Wall Street ended the week on a mixed note Friday, with the S&P 500 slipping despite strong weekly gains, as declines in semiconductor stocks and weaker consumer sentiment data weighed on investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 34.9 points, or 0.1%, to 44,946.1, lifted by a 12% surge in UnitedHealth. The S&P 500 fell 18.7 points, or 0.3%, to 6,449.8, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 87.7 points or 0.4% to finish at 21,623.0, retreating from an intraday record high.
Chipmakers were a drag on the broader market. AMD fell 1.9%, Nvidia lost nearly 0.9%, and Applied Materials shed 14.1%.
Economic data also dented sentiment. The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index dropped to 58.6 in August from 61.7 in July, as inflation concerns weighed on household confidence.
Still, the major benchmarks managed weekly advances. The Dow gained 1.7% for the week, outperforming peers, while the S&P 500 added 0.9% and the Nasdaq rose 0.8%.
The gains were fuelled by easing consumer inflation data earlier in the week, which strengthened expectations that the Federal Reserve could move to cut interest rates as soon as next month.
Fresh retail sales figures also suggested resilience in the United States consumer sector. Data released Friday showed July retail sales climbed 0.5%, in line with expectations. Sales excluding automobiles rose 0.3%, also meeting forecasts.
Bond yields edged higher, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rising 0.8% to 4.322%, and the 2-year yield increasing 0.5% to 3.755%.
