US open: Stocks head south as December PCE comes in hotter than expected

Wall Street stocks were in the red early on Friday as a rollercoaster week for major indices gets set to draw to a close.

As of 1515 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.54% at 33,976.95, while the S&P 500 was 0.27% weaker at 4,314.90 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.32% softer at 13,309.69.

The Dow opened 183.83 points lower on Friday after a broadly flat session a day earlier as investors digested comments from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell and a number of data points.

Friday's primary focus, however, was data from the Commerce Department that revealed its December personal consumption expenditures price index had risen 4.9% year-on-year, ahead of expectations of a 4.8% gain for its fastest gain since September 1983. Alongside the inflation figure, personal income rose 0.3% month-on-month, slightly lower than the 0.4% estimate, while consumer spending declined 0.6%, less than the 0.7% predicted.

Elsewhere on the macro front, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index fell to 67.2 in December, down from the flash estimate of 68.7 and well below November's reading of 70.6 to its lowest reading since 2011.

In the corporate space, Apple shares were up 3.28% after the tech behemoth posted its largest-ever single quarter revenue performance overnight despite supply challenges and the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, while Chevron shares were in the red 4.11% after the firm's fourth-quarter profits fell short of expectations.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was slightly lower ahead of the bell at 1.80%.

Dow Jones - Risers

Visa Inc. (V) $218.76 6.12%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $164.63 3.40%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $51.55 0.70%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $30.52 0.00%
Honeywell International Inc. (HON) $230.94 0.00%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $60.17 -0.02%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $248.43 -0.13%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $49.88 -0.24%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $132.14 -0.29%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $134.85 -0.42%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $202.26 -4.67%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $129.73 -4.17%
3M Co. (MMM) $164.26 -3.47%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $46.77 -2.66%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $141.45 -2.21%
Boeing Co. (BA) $185.70 -2.13%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $142.35 -2.04%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $334.82 -1.82%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $53.69 -1.71%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $295.06 -1.59%

S&P 500 - Risers

Visa Inc. (V) $218.76 6.12%
Discovery Inc. Class A (DISCA) $26.24 3.94%
Discovery Inc. Class C (DISCK) $25.67 3.78%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $164.63 3.40%
Mastercard Incorporated (MA) $360.66 2.89%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $575.95 2.66%
Halliburton Co. (HAL) $31.55 2.34%
Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) $111.76 2.31%
Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) $39.75 2.29%
Weyerhaeuser Co. (WY) $38.73 2.22%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $49.69 -7.70%
VF Corp. (VFC) $63.22 -6.13%
Resmed Inc. (RMD) $211.50 -5.95%
Synchrony Financial (SYF) $41.87 -5.74%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $35.28 -4.91%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $202.26 -4.67%
Ameriprise Financial Inc. (AMP) $290.51 -4.35%
Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) $20.99 -4.27%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $129.73 -4.17%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $347.30 -4.01%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $164.63 3.40%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $575.95 2.66%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $231.81 1.57%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $17.00 1.22%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $67.25 0.85%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $48.38 0.77%
Fiserv Inc. (FISV) $101.04 0.76%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $154.69 0.64%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $71.96 0.52%
Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) $2,367.34 0.33%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $5.97 -22.40%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $49.69 -7.70%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $347.30 -4.01%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $124.99 -3.97%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $533.39 -3.95%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $64.89 -3.82%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $76.11 -3.32%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $805.00 -2.91%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $69.13 -2.69%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $46.77 -2.66%