Opening Comment — Friday, April 17, 2026
DJIA: 48,578.72, up 115.00
S&P 500: 7,041.28, up 18.33
NASDAQ: 24,102.70, up 86.68
Stocks higher to end out week
Stock futures are higher Friday morning as markets remain optimistic regarding the prospects for a near-term end to the Iran war. Next week, investors will be looking forward to March retail sales data and the preliminary reading of April purchasing managers’ indexes (PMIs). As of 7:19 AM ET, the Dow is rising 0.4%, while the S&P 500 is up 0.3%. The Nasdaq 100 is increasing 0.2% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Thursday as initial jobless claims declined, though continuing claims for the week prior picked up. March’s industrial production unexpectedly declined, falling by 0.5% month-over-month, while capacity utilization fell to 75.7%. The Dow was up 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.4% and hit a new record closing level of 24102.70. The S&P 500 increased 0.3% and set a new record closing level of 7041.28, with seven of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Energy sector was the top performer, rising 1.6%, while the Health Care sector was the bottom performer, falling 0.8%.
Technical Analysis:
None at this time.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly higher in mid-day trading as the eurozone’s trade surplus narrowed in February from the prior month’s upwardly revised figure.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly lower as investors are awaiting next week’s economic releases, including South Korea’s first-quarter Gross Domestic Product, along with Japan’s April PMIs and March Consumer Price Index.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly lower.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 3.5% lower at $91.41/barrel.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.1% lower at $4,785.55/ounce despite a weakening U.S. dollar.