US Markets
Equity Markets Mostly Rise Intraday as Apple Helps Lift Tech
US benchmark equity indexes were mostly higher intraday as a post-earnings rally in Apple (AAPL) shares helped lift the technology sector, while oil prices fell.The Nasdaq Composite was up 1.2% at 25,183.1 after midday Friday, while the S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 7,252.5. Both benchmarks hit new closing highs in the previous session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed at 49,661.6 intraday Friday.Among sectors, tech paced the gainers with a 1.7% jump, while energy saw the biggest drop.Apple shares were up 4%, the best performer on the Dow. Late Thursday, the tech giant logged fiscal second-quarter results above Wall Street's estimates as iPhone revenue came in stronger than expected.Apple's fiscal third-quarter revenue guidance was well above the Street's estimates despite supply constraints for Mac models that will likely continue for several months, Wedbush Securities said in a note.Several other big tech names were also advancing intraday, with Oracle (ORCL) up 7.4%, among the biggest gainers on the S&P 500. Shares of Intel (INTC), Salesforce (CRM), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon.com (AMZN), Cisco Systems (CSCO), and IBM (IBM) were also higher.In other company news, Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX) reported year-over-year declines in their first-quarter earnings amid supply disruptions due to the Middle East war, though the figures came in ahead of the Street's estimates. Exxon shares were down 1.2% intraday, while Chevron lost 1.5%, the second-worst performer on the Dow.West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 3.1% to $101.82 per barrel, while Brent crude was down 2.1% at $108.04.US President Donald Trump said he is displeased with a new peace offer from Iran, noting that Tehran "wants to make a deal, but I'm not satisfied with it," CNBC reported Friday.Israeli strikes against the Habbouch town in southern Lebanon have killed six people, CNN reported, citing Lebanon's health ministry.US Treasury yields were lower intraday, with the 10-year rate down 1.4 basis points at 4.38% and the two-year rate losing one basis point to 3.88%.In economic news, the US manufacturing sector saw continued growth in April, though inflationary pressures intensified amid disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict, separate surveys by the Institute for Supply Management and S&P Global (SPGI) showed."The prices-paid index's steep climb to multiyear highs -- alongside the conspicuous slowdown in supplier deliveries -- signals mounting supply-chain stress and inflationary pressures driven by surging energy prices and war-related disruptions," TD Economics said in a note. "These resurgent price pressures are keeping the Federal Reserve on alert, supporting expectations that any additional monetary policy easing is unlikely in the near term."Three Fed officials who wanted language changes in the April monetary policy statement said Friday that risks to inflation and employment didn't warrant an inclusion of the so-called easing bias.On Wednesday, regional presidents Beth Hammack of Cleveland, Neel Kashkari of Minneapolis and Lorie Logan of Dallas supported the Fed's decision to keep its benchmark lending rate steady, but opposed including an easing bias in the Federal Open Market Committee statement.Gold rose 0.4% to $4,647 per troy ounce, while silver climbed 3% to $76.23 per ounce.
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