US stocks opened Friday’s session mixed, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq rising as much as 0.5% and the blue-chip Dow falling about 0.4% after the March inflation report showed energy costs surged last month, and investors await the results of weekend talks on the tenuous ceasefire in the US-Iran war.
About 20 minutes into Friday’s session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) — which moved back into green figures for the year on Thursday — fell about 0.4%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC), meanwhile, rose 0.4%. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) split the difference and was up less than 0.1%.
After rising for seven straight days, on Friday the S&P 500 will look to clinch its first winning Friday since Feb. 20.
On Thursday, the Dow closed higher to push the blue-chip index into positive territory for 2026. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both remained about a tenth of a percentage point away from erasing this year’s losses as of the close.
The release of consumer price index data on Friday showed annual headline rate soared in March to 3.3%, for the largest monthly gain since 2022. The rapid acceleration from February’s inflation level of 2.6% came as the US-Iran war sent gas prices skyrocketing.
Investors are now focused on the Iran-US talks slated to occur this weekend, looking for signs the fragile two-week truce might lead to a longer-lasting plan for peace. Ahead of the meeting, President Trump ramped up pressure on Iran to lift its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, with little sign of success. Traffic through the world’s most critical chokepoint for energy supply is still thin.
Oil futures were broadly flat, erasing the slight gains that followed Saudi Arabia’s warning that Iran’s recent attacks have lowered its production capacity. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures (CL=F) hovered just above $97 a barrel, while the international counterpart Brent crude futures (BZ=F) slid below $96.
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