Wall Street closed a bruising week on shaky ground Friday, with major indexes extending losses driven by rising oil prices and deepening skepticism around artificial intelligence investments.
The S&P 500 Index (SPY) fell by 0.52% on Friday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA) dropped a sharper 1.23%, reflecting broad-based selling pressure across blue-chip names.
The Nasdaq 100 Index (QQQ) managed to close unchanged, steadied by a partial recovery in chip stocks that helped offset Thursday’s dramatic 2.9% plunge in the index.
Thursday’s sell-off set a punishing tone heading into Friday, with the S&P 500 falling 1.2% as investors aggressively dumped chip and AI-related stocks on concerns about whether the AI theme can translate into sustainable profitability.
December E-mini S&P futures (ESZ26) fell 0.48% on Friday, while December E-mini Nasdaq futures (NQZ26) edged slightly higher, gaining 0.08% as sentiment in technology names cautiously stabilized.
WTI crude oil prices climbed more than 2% on Friday, adding fresh pressure to equities as markets weighed the risk of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and the possibility of renewed US and Israeli military strikes against Iran and the Houthis.
The New York Times reported Thursday that US and Israeli militaries have developed specific plans for renewed military strikes against Iran following the US and Israeli elections, though President Trump has not yet approved those plans.
Treasury markets also felt the strain, with T-note prices edging lower as higher oil prices pushed the 10-year breakeven inflation expectations rate up by 0.8 basis points to 2.348%, signaling renewed inflation concern among bond investors.
Among the Magnificent Seven, Meta (NASDAQ: META) slid an additional 0.5% Friday, compounding Thursday’s 7.0% loss that was tied directly to investor concern over the company’s massive and ongoing bet on artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) offered a modest counterpoint, gaining 0.5% Friday and clawing back a portion of Thursday’s 3.2% decline, which had followed a mixed earnings report released Wednesday afternoon.
Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE: NCLH) fell more than 3% after JPMorgan downgraded the stock to underweight from neutral and cut its price target to $11 from $13, citing a more cautious outlook on the cruise operator’s prospects.
SLB (NYSE: SLB), the oilfield services company formerly known as Schlumberger, bucked the broader trend with a gain of more than 7% after reporting above-consensus earnings, boosted by improved activity across Middle East markets.
