Stocks slipped Friday, giving back some of the strong gains seen in the previous session, but remained on track for solid weekly advances.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 46 points, or 0.1%. The S&P 500 dipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.1%.
Stocks surged during Thursday’s regular session, with the S&P 500 rising 1.7% to close over the 5,700 level for the first time. The blue-chip Dow ended the day more than 500 points higher to post its first-ever close above 42,000. Both indexes also registered all-time highs during the day. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.5%.
Unemployment data, along with the Fed’s half-point rate cut on Wednesday, seemed to bolster investors’ sentiment. Initial jobless claims, which came in at 219,000 for the week of Sept. 14, were lower than expected and showed a decline from the prior week.
“The first economic data point since the ‘jumbo’ rate cut should please the Fed,” said Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investing for E-Trade from Morgan Stanley. “Lower-than-expected jobless claims won’t raise any immediate concerns about the labor market slowing too much.”
The Fed’s Wednesday decision marked the first rate cut since 2020.
The three major averages are on pace for weekly gains, with the S&P 500 up nearly 1.6% through Thursday’s close. The Dow is toting a 1.5% jump on the week, while the Nasdaq is outperforming with a 1.9% advance.
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