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US Equity Indexes Rise This Week as Technology Mega-Caps Advance, Hormuz Reopening Deal in Works

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US equity indexes jumped this week amid gains in technology heavyweights and growing expectations of a deal between Iran and Oman that will pave the way for a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint for about a fifth of global crude oil and natural gas flows.

* The S&P 500 closed at 7,757.64 on Friday versus 7,494.08 a week ago. The Nasdaq Composite stood at 26,690.62, compared with 25,367.02 a week earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 54,036.93, versus 52,535.02 at the end of last week.

* Basic materials, technology, and industrials led gainers this week, while energy was the steepest decliner.

* Among companies with a market capitalization of more than $200 billion, nine of the top 10 outperformers this week were from the technology sector, according to data compiled by Finviz. The top gainer in this category was Palantir (PLTR) after Q2 sales and adjusted earnings surpassed analysts' estimates and the company boosted its full-year 2026 revenue outlook.

* Nonfarm payrolls fell by 23,000 in July, marking the first decline since February, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday. The consensus was for an 80,000 increase in July, according to a Bloomberg-compiled survey.

* The probability of the Federal Reserve keeping its target rate unchanged at 3.5%-3.75% in September surged to 56% on Friday from 45% a day ago and 33% a week ago, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

* Iranian lawmakers debated the wording of a proposed deal with Oman on the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said earlier this week that an understanding with Oman had been reached "in principle," and state TV cited one lawmaker on Friday as saying the final text and details of an agreement with Muscat will be announced "soon."

* The front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil traded at $76.85 late Friday, down from roughly $84.67 a week ago.

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Update: US Equity Indexes Fall as Treasury Yields Jump With Crude Oil Ahead of Nonfarm Payrolls, Deal to Reopen Strait of Hormuz

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Update: US Equity Indexes Mixed as Chipmakers Help Lift Technology While Crude Oil Jumps With Treasury Yields

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Exchange-Traded Funds Decline as US Equities Fall After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV edged lower. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) eased 0.4%.US equity indexes fell, while both government bond yields and crude oil rose after midday Thursday.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) each added about 1.3%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) added 0.1%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) also increased.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) rose 2.7%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) gained 0.9%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) shed 0.3%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) declined 1.1%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), advanced 1.1%.CommoditiesCrude oil rose 3.5%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) gained 3.5%. Natural gas fell 1.5%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) lost 0.6%.Gold on Comex eased 0.3%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) fell 0.3%. Silver was down 1.4%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) dropped 1.3%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was down 0.5%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) slipped 0.3%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) fell 0.8%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was down 0.6%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) fell 0.5%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) dropped 1.5%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) declined 0.5%, iShares US Healthcare (IYH) fell 0.3%, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) shed 0.4%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was up 0.1%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) fell 0.3%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) were also lower.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) dipped 0.2%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) fell 0.3%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) was down 0.5%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) fell fractionally.

Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH