Wall Street closed higher on Friday, with major indexes recovering from a three-day losing streak, though all three still ended the week in the red.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 300.0 points or 0.7% to finish at 46,247.3. The S&P 500 gained 39 points or 0.6% to 6,643.7, while the Nasdaq Composite added 23.3 points or 0.4% to close at 22,484.1.
For the week, the Dow ticked 0.2% lower, the S&P 500 fell 0.3% and the Nasdaq slipped 0.7%.
The moves came after August’s personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index - the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge - showed core inflation running at 2.9% on a seasonally adjusted annual basis, while headline inflation held at 2.7% with a 0.3% monthly increase.
Both measures aligned with expectations, reinforcing market bets on two more quarter-point Fed cuts this year, according to the CME Group FedWatch Tool.
Thursday’s strong economic data, however, kept traders cautious. Weekly jobless claims came in lower than expected, while second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) was revised sharply higher to 3.8%, suggesting underlying economic strength that could limit the Fed’s room to ease policy.
Still, losses in artificial intelligence-linked stocks capped broader gains. Oracle fell more than 8% over the week, weighing on the technology sector as investors questioned the sustainability of the AI rally.
On the bond markets, 10-year and 2-year rates eased 0.1% and 0.5% to 4.174% and 3.643%, respectively.
