Neil DennisStronger than expected third-quarter growth data helped push stocks on Wall Street higher and also gave the dollar a boost on Friday as investors weighed the implications for monetary policy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the most subdued among the US stock indicators, rising just fractionally. The best performance came from the Nasdaq Composite after blockbuster third-quarter results from Intel, Microsoft and Alphabet - the daftly-named stock formerly known as Google - boosted technology stocks.
Microsoft and Intel were the best two performing stocks on the Dow - up 6.4% to $83.81 and 7.4% to $44.40 respectively - offsetting losses for Merck and Chevron, which both reported earnings that failed to impress the Street. Merck shares fell 6.1% to $58.24 and Chevron eased 4.1% to $113.54.
Oil futures were also in focus as Brent crude rose above the $60 a barrel mark for the first time in more than two years, boosted by the rising dollar.
- Dow 23,434.19 +0.14%
- S&P 500 2,580.72 +0.79%
- Nasdaq 6,701.26 +2.2%
- NYSE Composite 12,366.27 +0.11%
- Gold 1,274.84 +0.4%
- Oil Brent crude $60.40 +1.9%
- Oil WTI $53.97 +2.5% (3:53PM EDT)
- 10-Year Treasury 2.4% -2 basis points
Barbie bruised: Mattel shares take a beating after weak third-quarter results: PA ImagesMattel sinks
Children all over the world shut your eyes and cover your ears - the world's largest toymaker Mattel Inc fell 8.9% to $14 after it said it was to suspend its quarterly dividend and use the cash to support its ailing business.
The bankruptcy of Mattel's largest distributor, Toys'R'Us, hit the company hard and it reported disappointing third-quarter results as net sales fell 13% to $1.56bn.
Weak demand for its core brands such as Barbie, Hot Wheels and others forced Mattel to a net loss of $603.3m, or $1.75 per share, after making a $236.3m profit a year earlier.
Expedia cuts forecasts
But the worst performance on the benchmark S&P 500 was online travel services company Expedia after it reported disappointing profits that forced it to cut its full-year profit targets.
Hurricanes had an impact and a poor performance at its Trivago hotel booking service saw third-quarter profit of $2.51 a share, falling shy of analysts' forecasts of $2.62 a share.
The company said it would now reduce its full-year core earnings forecasts to single-digit percentage growth, from earlier forecasts of between 10-15%.
Shares in Expedia ended Friday's session 16% lower at $123.79.