Dow ends slightly higher, S&P 500, Nasdaq post modest losses
Financials weakest S&P sector; Healthcare leads gainers
Dollar down; bitcoin dips; crude down >1%; gold ~flat
US 10-Year Treasury yield rises to ~4.32%
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THE DOW COMES CLOSE, BUT ONCE AGAIN, NO CIGAR
The Dow Industrials .DJI hit a fresh record intraday high early on Friday, for the first time since December 4, 2024. This, as UnitedHealth's UNH.N shares jumped after Berkshire Hathaway raised its stake in the health insurer, while investors also assessed mixed data to determine the Federal Reserve's next monetary policy move.
However, strength proved fleeting for the blue-chip average, and a reversal took hold. UNH still rose 12%, while contributing a gain of 200 index points to the DJI.
After hitting 45,203.52, the Dow closed up just 0.08% at 44,946.12. With this, it once again failed to set a new record close, ending down 0.15% from its 45,014.04 December 4, 2024 record finish.
The S&P 500 .SPX also hit a fresh record intraday high. However, the benchmark index closed down about 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC lost 0.4%.
Markets are also focused on a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, with hopes it could pave the way for a resolution to the Ukraine conflict and determine the outlook for crude prices.
A majority of S&P 500 sectors ended lower with financials .SPSY, down more than 1%, the weakest group. Healthcare .SPXHC, up more than 1.6%, with its biggest boost also from UNH, led gainers.
Communication services .SPLRCL advanced, and ended at a record close.
Under the surface, big banks .SPXBK, regional banks .KRX and chips .SOX were among weaker groups.
For the week, the Nasdaq rose 0.81%, the SPX gained 0.94%, and the Dow rallied 1.74%. It was the Dow's biggest weekly gain since early July.
Here is a snapshot of where markets stood shortly after the 4 p.m. close:
(Terence Gabriel)
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EARLIER ON LIVE MARKETS:
INDIVIDUAL INVESTOR BULLS BATTERED, BEARS BOAST - AAII CLICK HERE
TARIFF WHIPLASH: STANDARD CHARTERED FLAGS GROWTH RISKS AS TRUMP RESETS TRADE RULES CLICK HERE
WALL STREET MIXED, DOW HITS RECORD INTRADAY HIGH CLICK HERE
WHAT A UKRAINE PEACE DEAL WILL MEAN FOR EUROPEAN MARKETS CLICK HERE
IS THE DOW ABOUT TO FINALLY TAKE A SEAT AT THE NEW HIGHS TABLE? CLICK HERE
DEFINITELY MAYBE AN OASIS IMPACT ON BRITISH INFLATION CLICK HERE
CITI BEARISH ON COPPER, BUT NOT AS BEARISH AS BEFORE CLICK HERE
CENTRAL BANK STATUS QUO SET FOR JACKSON HOLE TEST CLICK HERE
STOXX INCHES UP BEFORE ALASKA SUMMIT CLICK HERE
EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: EARLY BOUNCE, THEN WAIT FOR ALASKA CLICK HERE
MORNING BID WHO'S AFRAID OF A HOT PPI? CLICK HERE
Closer08152025 https://tmsnrt.rs/4oKNiF5
(Terence Gabriel is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own)