US equity indexes rose this week amid gains in big tech and as Iran floated a conditional proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days and resume talks over its nuclear program, helping outweigh a surge in government bond yields.
* The S&P 500 closed at 7,743.41 on Friday, versus 7,650.14 a week ago. The Nasdaq Composite stood at about 27,068.72, compared with 26,522.55 a week earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 51,828.62, versus 51,681.93 at the end of last week.
* Technology, communication services and healthcare topped the gainers, while utilities, energy and real estate led decliners.
* Among stocks with market capitalization exceeding $200 billion, four out of the top 5 gainers this week were chipmakers, Finviz data showed. Intel (INTC), Qualcomm (QCOM), Arm (ARM), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) each surged 13%, and Meta Platforms (META) also advanced 13% following its Muse AI agent announcements this week.
* In geopolitical news, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is willing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart talks on its nuclear program if Washington accepts its conditions, CNBC reported, citing Araghchi's remarks on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. "The conditions we have asked the US to meet are nothing new, nothing more than what was already in the Islamabad [memorandum of understanding]."
* The front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil contract fell 2.3% to $92.45 per barrel, and the global benchmark North Sea Brent declined 2.1% to $104.40 per barrel.
* The US 30-year Treasury yield traded near 5.49%, the highest since 2004, as strong economic data and Fed-speak highlighting inflation concerns contributed to an increase in bets favoring a back-to-back interest rate increase in October. The 10-year yield stood at 5.17%, the strongest level since 2007.
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