Small gains for US stocks on Friday

Indices post weekly losses though

The U.S. stock market closed higher on Friday, 11 July 2014 after the main benchmarks picked up steam in late afternoon, trimming weekly losses. Equities slipped at the open amid weakness in two cyclical sectors - energy and financials. The other sectors held much closer to their flat lines.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 28.74 points, or 0.2% to 16,943.81, bur recorded a 0.7% weekly loss. The Nasdaq Composite added 19.29 points, or 0.4%, higher at 4,415.49 but was 1.6% lower over the week. The S&P 500 closed up 2.89 points, or 0.2% at 1,967.57 and finished the week 0.9% lower.

In overseas markets, European stocks bounced back on Friday after Thursday's drop, which came as Portuguese conglomerate Espito Santo International SA this week missed a payment on some short-term debt. That sent shares of its subsidiaries, Banco Espirito Santo AS and Espirito Santo Financial Group SA, spiraling lower.

Economic data at Wall Street on Friday was limited to the Treasury Budget for June, which posted a surplus of $70.50 billion versus a surplus of $116.50 billion in June 2013. The Treasury data are not seasonally adjusted so the June data cannot be compared with the $130.00 billion deficit from May. Fiscal year-to-date, the deficit is $365.90 billion, $144.00 billion less than the comparable period for FY13.

Banking heavyweight Wells Fargo kicked off the reporting season for the financial sector with headline earnings that were in line with expectations. Amazon's stock climbed 5.6%. The company unveiled new products for its successful Amazon Web Services business, including new systems for collaboration and mobile.

The energy sector was pinned to its lows throughout the session with the two top-weighted componentsChevron and ExxonMobil pressuring the sector. The two lost 1.4% and 0.8%, respectively.

Also of note, the relative strength of the technology sector contributed to the outperformance of the Nasdaq Composite. Google and Facebook spiked 1.1% and 2.3%, respectively, but the top-weighted sector componentApple surrendered the bulk of its gain into the close. On the earnings front, Infosys lost 2.6% despite beating earnings estimates.

Gold futures settled lower on Friday, 11 July 2014 at Comex. Gold still scored their sixth straight weekly gain as traders gauged the risks posed by a troubled Portuguese bank. Gold for August delivery fell $1.80, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,337.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices ended the week 1.3% higher, taking their six-week total gain to more than $76 an ounce. September silver closed down almost 5 cents, or 0.2%, to $21.46 an ounce, but was about 1.5% higher for the week.

Crude oil futures dropped below $101 a barrel on Friday, 11 July 2014 to mark a fourth weekly loss and their lowest close in two months, as worries continued to fade over near-term threats to Iraqi oil production and Libyan production came back online.

West Texas intermediate crude for August delivery fell $2.10, or 2%, to settle at $100.83 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a day after breaking a nine-day losing streak. They ended roughly 3.1% lower for the week.

The International Energy Agency on Friday said Iraqi production fell by 260,000 barrels a day in the past month after violence in the north of the country, but increased supply from Saudi Arabia, Iran, Nigeria and Angola offset the decline to leave OPEC production broadly steady at 30 million barrels a day in June.

Treasuries posted modest gains with the 10-yr note adding five ticks to send its yield lower by two basis points to 2.52%.

Participation was well below average with just 571 million shares changing hands at the NYSE floor.

There is no economic data on Monday's schedule.

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