Friday’s session ended Wall Street’s fourth consecutive losing week — the longest such run in more than a year — and the technical damage is now meaningful enough to shift how institutional money thinks about positioning.
The S&P 500 closed at 6,506.48 on Friday, down 1.51% on the day. More significantly, it slipped below its 200-day moving average for the first time since last May. Historically, that level acts as a dividing line between bull market behaviour and something more uncertain.
The Nasdaq fell 2.01% to 21,647.61. The Dow dropped 443.96 points to close at 45,577.47, with 27 of 30 components finishing in the red.
IBM was the Dow’s worst performer of the session, falling 3.4%.
The Russell 2000 small-cap index led the damage, entering official correction territory with a drop of more than 10% from its recent high. Smaller companies carry more floating-rate debt and feel tighter financial conditions faster.
The proximate cause of the week’s losses was oil, which climbed to $112.19 per barrel after Iraq declared force majeure on all foreign-operated oilfields and drones struck Kuwaiti refineries. Iran’s ongoing Strait of Hormuz closure remains the underlying structural driver.
Goldman Sachs told clients on Friday that elevated oil prices could persist through 2027. That is not a near-term disruption — it is a multi-year repricing of the inflation and rates outlook.
The Federal Reserve met mid-week and voted 11-1 to hold the benchmark rate in the 3.5% to 3.75% range. Chair Powell shifted to a “wait and see” posture, acknowledging uncertainty while offering no comfort to those hoping for near-term cuts.
NYSE commentary noted that the most notable change of the week was arguably in global bond yields. Two-year Gilt yields rose approximately 50 basis points across the week as European central banks took a hawkish tilt. Treasury yields followed.
The ICE BofA MOVE Index — a measure of Treasury volatility — nearly doubled from around 80 to just under 110 since the start of the year.
Through the noise, FedEx offered a reminder that individual earnings can still command attention. Shares rose sharply in premarket on Thursday after the company reported adjusted EPS of $5.25, beating estimates by $1.12, with revenue of $24 billion, up 8.1% year over year. Management guided for full-year EPS of $19.30 to $20.10 versus analyst estimates of $18.69.