U.S. stocks ticked slightly higher Friday, but major stock indexes remained on track to close out the week lower.
The S&P 500 edged 0.4% higher, following its worst one-day retreat since June 18. That put the S&P 500 on track to end the week about 0.2% lower, which would break a two-week streak of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 0.6%, or 192 points. The blue-chip gauge stood about 0.5% lower for the week.
The tech heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was up 0.1% on the day and down 0.4% for the week.
Markets have grown jittery in recent days on a bevy of concerns. Investors are worried that new Covid-19 variants could stall the global economic recovery despite vaccines being rolled out. Supply-chain bottlenecks and concerns over labor-market participation are also weighing on sentiment. That has led some money managers to trim bets on companies that are most likely to benefit when the economy recovers.
“The music has changed. We are entering a new phase” for markets, said Luca Paolini, chief strategist at Pictet Asset Management. “There has been a shift in the fundamentals of the market from high growth, low inflation to higher inflation, weaker growth.”
