US open: Stocks higher despite ongoing fears regarding potential economic slowdown

dl exchange place wall st street pl new york city nyc ny nyse stock exchange dow jones sp nasdaq finance dollar dollars us usa united states of america — Exchange PlaceSharecast photo / Josh White

Wall Street stocks were in the green early on Friday despite fears of a potential economic slowdown continuing to weigh on sentiment.

As of 1515 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.22% at 29,994.25, while the S&P 500 was 0.54% firmer at 3,686.50 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.22% stronger at 10,776.36.

The Dow opened 67.18 points higher on Friday, taking a small bit out of heavy losses recorded in the previous session following rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, Swiss National Bank, and the Bank of England.

The blue-chip Dow Jones slipped below 30,000 for the first time in almost 18 months on Thursday, with the average on track for its 11th negative week in the last 12, while the S&P 500 was down 6% week-on-week, setting it on a course for its worst weekly performance since March 2020.

Quadruple witching was also drawing an amount of investor attention on Friday, with the final session of the week marking the simultaneous expiration of stock index futures, single-stock futures, stock options, and stock index options.

On the macro front, policymakers at the US central bank are "acutely" focused on maintaining price and financial stability, with the latter of key importance for meeting the Federal Reserve's mandate of achieving 2.0% inflation and full employment.

In remarks prepared for a speech at a research conference sponsored by the Fed board, chairman Jerome Powell also highlighted how price stability encouraged other countries to hold and use US dollars.

Elsewhere, industrial production increased 5.8% year-on-year in May following a 6.3% rise in April, according to the Federal Reserve, with the mining sector recording the biggest increase at 9%, followed by utilities at 8.4% and manufacturing at 4.8%.

Finally, the Conference Board's leading index decreased by 0.4% in May to 118.3, fuelled by tumbling stock prices, a slowdown in housing construction, and gloomier consumer expectations.

Also in focus, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was trading higher at 3.272% at the bell, while the two-year note was hot on its heels at 3.184%.

No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Friday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $163.67 2.39%
American Express Co. (AXP) $140.56 2.23%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $40.49 2.07%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $132.13 1.59%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $95.70 1.51%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $234.19 1.51%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $247.85 1.18%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $43.83 1.17%
Boeing Co. (BA) $134.67 0.98%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $171.74 0.98%