LIVE MARKETS-US stocks pare losses with Powell remarks

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U.S. STOCKS PARE LOSSES WITH POWELL REMARKS

The U.S. central bank will be in no rush to cut interest rates while it waits for more clarity on how the policies of the new Trump administration affect the economy, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Friday.

After hitting a low of 5,669.46 shortly before noon, which put it down 1.26% on the session, the S&P 500 index .SPX is now off around 0.3%, at around 5,715.

Of note, every S&P 500 sector has strengthened since around the time Powell's remarks hit the wire, with consumer discretionary .SPLRCD leading the recovery.

Chips .SOX, regional banks .KRX, and midcaps are among groups outperforming over this period.

That said, traders will be watching to see if the benchmark S&P 500 index can reclaim its 200-day moving average, which is now at about 5,733.

Here is a snapshot of where markets stood around 12:55 p.m. EST:

(Terence Gabriel)

FOR FRIDAY'S EARLIER LIVE MARKETS POSTS:

UBS SAYS TO STAY IN STOCKS, BUT CONSIDER HEDGES - CLICK HERE

INVESTORS RIDE THE CHINESE DRAGON AMID U.S. TARIFF WOES - CLICK HERE

COULD'VE BEEN WORSE: A JOBS REPORT DEEP DIVE - CLICK HERE

U.S. STOCKS FIGHT TO STABILIZE, AWAIT POWELL REMARKS - CLICK HERE

U.S. STOCK FUTURES CHURN, YIELDS FALL, AFTER LATEST JOBS DATA - CLICK HERE

EUROPEAN BANK RALLY 'FASTER AND STRONGER' THAN PREDICTED - UBS - CLICK HERE

MAG 7? MORE LIKE 'LAG 7'... - CLICK HERE

EUROPEAN STOCKS FALL ON U.S. TRADE POLICY CONFUSION - CLICK HERE

EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: FUTURES LOWER AS TRUMP FLIP-FLOPS ON TARIFFS - CLICK HERE

PAYROLLS AND POWELL PROVIDE FOCAL POINT - CLICK HERE