Stocks ended mostly higher Friday, helping the S&P 500 index close out its best week since February. It's a notable turnaround for the market, which only the previous week had its worst week since February on concerns about inflation.
The S&P 500 index closed up 14.21 points, or 0.3%, to 4,280.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 237.02 points, or 0.7%, to 34,433.84 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 9.32 points, or 0.1%, to 14,360.39. With Friday's gains, the S&P 500 index ended the week up 2.7%, its best five-day period since Feb. 5 .
The Dow’s gains were driven by a surge in Nike, which reported blowout earnings late Thursday and gave investors a strong outlook for the year. Nike rose 15.5%.
Markets have calmed since the Federal Reserve surprised investors last week by saying it could start raising short-term interest rates by late 2023, earlier than expected, if recent high inflation persists. The calming of investors' nerves has largely helped the market undo the damage from the previous week.
Investors got another data point on inflation on Friday. The Commerce Department said inflation tied to a gauge of consumer spending that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve increased 0.4% in May and is up 3.9% over the past 12 months, well above the Fed’s 2% target for annual price increases.
“Today’s inflation data should calm some nerves about runaway inflation. Remember, the PCE is the Fed’s favorite measure of inflation, and it very well could be near a peak in inflation," Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist for LPL Financial, wrote in an email to investors.
Investors are also embracing a bipartisan deal for infrastructure spending. President Biden and a group of Democrat and GOP senators were able to reach a near $1 trillion deal to build out numerous parts of the country's infrastructure, including roads, rails and ports. The plan, costing $973 billion over five years, is the culmination of months of talks, and a larger spending plan from President Biden is still possible later this year.
FedEx fell 3.6% after the company announced it would increase its spending to reduce delivery delays across its network.
Virgin Galactic jumped 38.9% after the company got approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to start its flights into space, the final approval the company to begin commercial spaceflight.
Updated on June 25, 2021, at 5:40 p.m. ET.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
Nvidia reported a 56% increase in second-quarter revenue and a 59% rise in net income compared to a year ago.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos claims audiences don't want to watch Netflix movies in theaters, but that seems not to be the case recently.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
