Finance

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.2% on Friday, securing its third consecutive weekly gain and hovering near record highs. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 suffered weekly losses of 1.3% and 0.3%, respectively, despite their Friday gains. Tech stocks, particularly chipmaker Nvidia, continued to carry the broader markets amid ongoing shifts in Treasury yields.

U.S. government bond yields pulled back after reaching historic highs, alleviating pressure on risk assets. The yield on the 2-year Treasury note fell to 4.7%, while the 10-year yield dipped to around 5.16% after recently testing 24-year peaks. The soft jobs report served as the primary catalyst for the retreat, cooling investor anxieties over persistently elevated consumer borrowing costs.

Crude oil futures closed lower on Friday, with West Texas Intermediate settling down 1.9% at $91.11 per barrel. The drop followed an agreement by the G-7, European nations, and the International Energy Agency to release 100 million barrels of crude and diesel from emergency stockpiles to combat high energy costs. Despite the coordinated reserve release, global oil prices remain heavily influenced by ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and shipping disruptions.