With traders shrugging off relatively upbeat economic data amid a negative reaction to quarterly results from some major technology companies, stocks showed a notable move to the downside over the course of the trading day on Friday.
The major averages all moved sharply lower on the day, closing near their worst levels of the session. The Dow fell by 115.42 points or 1 percent to 11,934.58, the Nasdaq dropped by 33.86 points or 1.3 percent to 2,652.89 and the S&P 500 slid by 15.05 points or 1.2 percent to 1,268.45.
As a result of the losses on the day, the Dow and the S&P 500 posted weekly losses of 0.6 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively, while the Nasdaq held on to a 1.4 percent weekly gain.
A negative reaction to quarterly results from Oracle (ORCL) contributed to the weakness on Wall Street, with the business software giant falling by 4.1 percent on the day.
The loss by Oracle came even though the company reported fourth quarter adjusted earnings of $0.75 per share on revenues of $10.78 billion, above analyst estimates for earnings of $0.71 per share on revenues of $10.75 billion.
While Oracle also said new software license revenue rose 19 percent to $3.7 billion, it said hardware systems product revenues fell 6 percent to $1.2 billion.
Shares of Micron Technology (MU) showed a more substantial move to the downside on the day after the chip maker reported weaker than expected third quarter results. Micron fell by 14.5 percent to a seven-month closing low.
The weakness on Wall Street also came as traders continued to express concerns about the financial situation in Europe after Moody's placed the long-term debt and deposit ratings of 16 Italian banks and two Italian government-related financial institutions on review for possible downgrade.
Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a report from the Commerce Department showing a stronger than expected rebound in durable goods orders in the month of May.
The report said new orders for durable goods rose by 1.9 percent in May following a revised 2.7 percent drop in April. Economists had been expecting orders to increase by a more modest 1.5 percent.
Paul Ashworth, Chief U.S. Economist at Capital Economics, said that the rebound in durable goods orders in May will help ease any fears that the economy is headed for a double-dip recession.
"Nevertheless, it doesn't change the broader picture that economic growth has slowed sharply over the past few months," he added.
A separate report from the Commerce Department showed that U.S. gross domestic product grew by 1.9 percent in the first quarter, reflecting an upward revision from the 1.8 percent growth that had been reported previously.
Sector News
Reflecting weakness in the tech sector, electronic storage stocks turned in some of the market's worst performances. The NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index fell by 4 percent, offsetting the notable upward move seen earlier in the week.
SanDisk (SNDK) posted a particularly steep loss on the day, falling by 9.2 percent, while Western Digital (WDC) and NetApp (NTAP) also posted notable losses.
Among tech stocks, considerable weakness was also visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent loss posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The weakness in the sector came in reaction to the disappointing results from Micron.
Gold stocks also saw substantial weakness on the day, moving lower along with the price of the precious metal. With gold for August delivery falling $19.60 to $1,500.90 an ounce, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index dropped by 2.6 percent.
Most of the other major sectors also showed notable moves to the downside, with oil service, airline, and healthcare provider stocks posting significant losses.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region closed mostly higher on Friday after ending the previous session mixed. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.9 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged up by 1.9 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.4 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index fell by 0.1 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries turned higher over the course of the trading day after seeing early weakness. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, fell by 3.8 basis points to a new six-month closing low of 2.871 percent.
Looking Ahead
Looking ahead to next week, trading is likely to be impacted by the outcome of a crucial vote by the Greek parliament on a package of austerity measures. The package is required for the debt-plagued nation to receive additional financial assistance.
Economic data may also attract some attention, with traders likely to keep an eye on reports on personal income and spending, consumer confidence, and pending home sales.
Additionally, Nike (NKE), General Mills (GIS), and Constellation Brands (STZ) are among the companies scheduled to release their quarterly results next week.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.