March 23, 2018: Markets opened slightly higher Friday but the major indexes couldn’t hold onto their gains in the face of China’s first retaliatory shot in a trade war kicked off by Trump yesterday. China’s opening salvo did not hit soybeans or Boeing, two big and easy targets. The president signed the $1.3 trillion spending bill that will keep the government funded through September of next year, avoiding a government shutdown ahead of this fall’s election.
WTI crude oil for May delivery settled at $65.88 a barrel, up 2.5% for the day and up about 5.6% for the week. April gold added about 1.7% on the day to settle at $1,349.90. Equities were headed for a lower close about 10 minutes before the bell as the Dow traded down 1.44% for the day, the S&P 500 traded down 1.83%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded down 1.99%.
Bitcoin futures (XBTJ8) for April delivery traded at $8,630, up about 0.4% on the CBOE after opening at $8,630 this morning. The digital currency’s trading range for the day was $8,280 to $8,780.
The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage loss ahead of the close Friday was DowDuPont Inc. (NYSE: DWDP) which traded down 3.55% at $63.29. The stock’s 52-week range is $59.29 to $77.08. Volume was about 20% above the daily average of around 8.6 million. The company had no specific news.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) traded down 2.94% at $34.56. The stock’s 52-week range is $31.67 to $39.43. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of about 23.8 million shares. The company is having difficulty finding a buyer for its over-the-counter assets and its Chantix anti-smoking treatment failed a test among 12 to 19 year-old smokers.
3M Company (NYSE: MMM) traded down 2.91% at $216.66 in a 52-week range of $188.62 to $259.77. Volume of about 3.3 million shares was around 30% above the daily average. The company had no specific news Friday.
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) traded down 2.34% at $246.68. The stock’s 52-week range is $209.62 to $275.31. Volume was about 15% below the daily average of about 3.4 million. The company had no specific news Friday.
Of the Dow stocks, just 2 are on track to close higher Friday and 28 are set to close lower.
24/7 Wall St.Sponsored: Find a Qualified Financial Advisor
Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Editors' Picks
