Opening Comment — Friday, May 29, 2026
DJIA: 50,668.97, up 24.69
S&P 500: 7,563.63, up 43.27
NASDAQ: 26,917.47, up 242.74
Stocks higher to end out week
Stock futures are higher Friday morning amid reports of a ceasefire extension between the U.S. and Iran, pending approval from U.S. President Donald Trump. Investors are also looking forward to today’s April advance goods trade balance and preliminary wholesale inventory data. Next week, markets will be watching for May purchasing managers’ indexes (PMIs) and labor market data, capped by Friday’s (June 5) jobs report. As of 7:25 AM ET, the Dow is rising 0.3%, while the S&P 500 is up 0.2%. The Nasdaq 100 is also increasing 0.2% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Thursday as spending and inflation data came in mostly as expected, while personal income was unexpectedly unchanged. Meanwhile, the second reading of first-quarter gross domestic product growth was revised downward to a 1.6% annualized pace. Both initial and continuing jobless claims ticked up. April durable goods order rose more than expected, while the month’s new home sales fell more than projected. The Dow was up 0.1% and reached a new record closing level of 50668.97, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9% and hit a new record closing level of 26917.47. The S&P 500 increased 0.6% and set a new record closing level of 7563.63, with five of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Health Care sector was the top performer, rising 1.4%, while the Utilities sector was the bottom performer, falling 1.1%.
Technical Analysis:
As of midday Thursday, the trend for the S&P 500 remains higher. Resistance is yet to be determined, while support lies at the 50-day and 200-day moving averages of 7,039 and 6,825, respectively.
On the data front, the advance goods trade balance for April is projected to show a deficit of $87.0 billion, lower than the prior month’s revised deficit of $87.4 billion. The preliminary April reading of wholesale inventories is expected to show an increase of 0.8% month-over month (MOM) compared to the prior month’s increase of 1.3%, while retail inventories are forecasted to have increased by 0.5% MOM in April, versus the prior month’s revised increase of 0.6%. The Market News International Chicago PMI for May is expected to come in at 50.3, up from the prior month’s 49.2.
Across the pond, European stocks are higher in mid-day trading as Germany’s Import Price Index registered increases of 1.2% MOM and 5.3% year-over-year (YOY) in April. The country’s unemployment change unexpectedly declined in May and the unemployment claims rate eased to 6.3%. Meanwhile, France’s preliminary May Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.1% MOM and 2.4% YOY, both coming in below projections. The finalized reading of French first-quarter gross domestic product was revised downward, showing a decrease of 0.1% quarter-over-quarter and increase of 0.9% YOY.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly higher as Japan’s Tokyo CPI came in cooler than expected both on a headline and core basis in May, rising 1.4% and 1.6% YOY, respectively. Meanwhile, the country’s jobless rate fell to 2.5% for April and the job-to-applicant ratio remained steady at 1.18. Japanese retail sales increased by 1.3% MOM and 2.1% YOY in April, while the preliminary reading of industrial production rose by 0.8% MOM and 2.3% YOY, respectively. The country’s annualized housing starts stood at 724,000 in April, reflecting a milder-than-expected 11.4% YOY increase. Meanwhile, South Korea’s April industrial production decreased by 0.7% MOM and 1.5% YOY, respectively.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly higher ahead of today’s U.S. April trade data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 1.9% lower at $87.19/barrel as markets evaluate the latest news on U.S.-Iran peace negotiations.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.9% higher at $4,537.36/ounce despite a strengthening U.S. dollar.