Stocks were lower in afternoon trading Friday as investors digested the latest threats from President Donald Trump to impose hefty tariffs on U.S. trading partners.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was recently down 0.7%, or more than 300 points, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite was flat. Stocks are coming off a winning session on Thursday, when the benchmark S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed at record highs, while the Dow finished less than 1% away from its first new high since December.
Trump said late Thursday in a post on Truth Social that he plans to impose 35% tariffs on imports from Canada as of August 1, while in an interview with NBC News he said that most countries will likely face import levies of 15% or 20%, up from the current 10%. Trump has sent letters this week to more than 20 countries informing them of the tariff rates that will be imposed starting in August if deals aren’t reached before then. The flurry of announcements has revived investor concerns about the potential impact of tariffs, which experts say are likely to spur inflation and hurt economic growth.
Shares of the world’s largest technology companies, which have paced the recent rally, were mostly higher on Friday. Nvidia (NVDA) shares were up 1.3% recently after the AI chip giant closed yesterday’s session with a market capitalization above $4 trillion, the first company ever to do that. Amazon (AMZN) shares rose more than 1% as the online retail giant’s “Amazon Prime” event wraps up Friday, while Alphabet (GOOG) also added more than 1%. Microsoft (MSFT), Broadcom (AVGO) and Tesla (TSLA) inched higher, while Meta Platforms (META) declined 1% and Apple (AAPL) fell slightly.
Cyrpto-related stocks were moving higher as the price of bitcoin surged to a record high for the third straight day. Major bitcoin buyer Strategy (MSTR) and bitcoin miner MARA Holdings (MARA) each gained about 2.5%. Bitcoin was at $115,200 recently after hitting a high of $118,900 this morning, up from around $114,000 yesterday afternoon.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the performance of the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, was up 0.2% at 97.82, adding to the modest gains it’s posted this week after hitting its lowest level since early 2022 last week.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, notably mortgages, was at 4.42%, up from 4.35% at yesterday’s close.
Gold futures were up 1.3% at $3,370 an ounce recently, trading at their highest level in nearly three weeks, while West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, rose 2.8% to $68.40 per barrel, rebounding from the previous session’s steep decline.
AeroVironment, Kratos Get Boost from Pentagon Drone Push
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Shares of military drone makers AeroVironment (AVAV) and Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (KTOS) took off Friday, a day after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced new government plans to unleash drone production in the U.S.
In a video posted on X, Hegseth said he sent a memo to commanders of all the services explaining that he was “rescinding restrictive policies” on Pentagon purchases, which he said would boost the domestic manufacturing base by producing thousands of U.S.-made drones and prioritizing “buy American,” and that service personnel would be armed with low-cost, American-crafted drones. Hegseth added that senior officers had to “overcome bureaucratic risk aversion in budgeting, weaponeering, and training.”
Hegseth said that while U.S. “adversaries have produced millions of cheap drones, before us, we were mired in bureaucratic red tape. Not anymore.”
The news sent shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions up 12% to their highest level in 19 years. AeroVironment shares hit an all-time high June 30, and despite tumbling the next day after announcing a $1.35 billion stock and debt sale, the shares have added about two-thirds of their value this year, including a 10% gain Friday.
Levi Strauss Jumps After Strong Earnings, Boosted Outlook
1 hr 21 min ago
Shares of Levi Strauss (LEVI) soared Friday, a day after the denim retailer reported fiscal second-quarter results that topped analysis expectations and lifted its full-year outlook.
Analysts t JP Morgan noted that Levi’s management said it has seen “no signs of moderation in business momentum to date including June or 3Q-to-date,” as they lifted their price target to $23 from $18. The new target puts JPMorgan above the average price target of $20.63 held by the eight analysts tracked by Visible Alpha, split between six “buy” and two “hold” ratings.
Levi Strauss saw sales increase across all of its regions and in both of its men’s and women’s segments in Q2. The analysts noted executives said that the brand became the No. 1 women’s denim brand in the last 12 months.
Cheng Xin / Getty Images
Last quarter, Levi’s management said that it was considering price changes to mitigate the impact of tariffs, but said they planned to be “surgical” if they had to raise them at all rather than hiking prices across the board. JPMorgan analysts upgraded Levi stock to “overweight” from “neutral” following the Q1 report, but cut their price target on concerns that tariffs could hamper full-year profit.
Levi shares were up 11% at around $22 recently, trading at their highest level in more than a year.
Bitcoin Surges to Near $119K as Record Run Continues
2 hr 20 min ago
Bitcoin (BTCUSD) topped $118,000 for the first time, surpassing Thursday’s record as it continued to gain from companies adding it to their corporate treasuries and lawmakers passing pro-crypto legislation.
Bitcoin was trading at $118,000 recent, after rising to about $118,900 earlier Friday.
Bitcoin has now gained more than 25% so far this year, outpacing the S&P 500’s rise of 7% and surpassing the surge by AI darling Nvidia (NVDA), which this week became this first company ever to surpass the $4 trillion market capitalization milestone.
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Bitcoin surged earlier this year on retail investors buying into ETFs but took a hit, along with the broader stock market, after President Donald Trump imposed his “Liberation Day” tariffs in April. Since then, the cryptocurrency has gained from a wave of companies joining Strategy (MSTR) in loading up on bitcoin.
Crypto has also gained increased legitimacy with President Trump establishing a strategic bitcoin reserve and the Senate passing the GENIUS Act, a bill that would enable private companies to issue stablecoins. These are cryptocurrencies with their value tied directly to a state-issued currency, often the U.S. dollar.
Airline Stock Price Levels to Watch After Thursday’s Big Rally
3 hr 33 min ago
Airlines stocks were under pressure early Friday giving back some of the huge gains posted yesterday after Delta Air Lines (DAL) reported better-than-expected earnings and reinstated its full-year guidance.
Delta shares soared 12% on the results, while United Airlines (UAL) climbed 14% to lead S&P 500 advancers on Thursday and American Airlines (AAL) surged 13%.
Airline stocks had faced headwinds in the first half of the year due to soft travel spending as President Donald Trump’s trade policies dented consumer and business confidence, prompting carriers to lower their outlooks, or in the case of Delta, remove it. Delta CEO Ed Bastian said Thursday that the decision to restore full-year guidance reflected “our confidence in the business.”
Delta
Delta shares have broken out from a symmetrical triangle. Key overhead areas on the chart to watch sit at $59 and $70, while an important support level lies at $50. Delta shares were down 2% at $55.50 in the opening minutes of Friday’s session.
United
United’s stock oscillated within an ascending triangle before breaking out above the pattern and the 200-day moving average on Thursday. Crucial overhead areas sit at $104 and $116, while retracements may find support around $83. United shares fell about 2% to around $90 in early trading Friday.
American
American Airlines shares have broken out from a key horizontal line that stretches back to last September, which also marks the neckline of a double bottom pattern. Notable overhead areas to watch sit at $15 and $17.50, while the $12 level may provide support. American shares fell 2.5% to $12.60 recently.
Major Stock Index Futures Move Lower
4 hr 41 min ago
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.6%.
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S&P 500 futures also declined 0.6%.
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Nasdaq 100 futures were off 0.5%.
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