Major indices mixed as stocks look to continue their winning streak

Major indexes traded lower in early trading on Friday as investors took some profits after six consecutive gaining sessions for U.S. stocks.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite lost 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively, while indexes tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%. Stocks closed sharply higher on Thursday as investor sentiment was boosted by better-than-expected retail sales and jobs data, as well as a strong earnings report from retail giant Walmart.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are on a six-day winning streak, while the Dow has closed higher on five of the last six trading days, as concerns about the health of the economy have eased and optimism grows about the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates next month.

Friday’s earnings calendar is clear, but investors are keeping an eye on economic reports. Housing starts data released early Friday was weaker than expected, and the latest consumer sentiment data is due at 10 a.m. ET.

The mega-cap technology stocks that have powered the recent rally were mostly lower in early trading Friday. Nvidia (NVDA), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT) and Apple (AAPL) were all lower, while Alphabet (GOOGL) was up slightly.

The yield on 10-year government bonds, which depends heavily on interest rate expectations, fell slightly to 3.89%.

Gold futures rose more than 1% to around $2,530 an ounce, a new record, while crude oil futures fell 2%. Bitcoin rose to around $59,000.