LIVE MARKETS-US equities finish with a modest advance, some records

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US EQUITIES FINISH THE WEEK WITH A MODEST ADVANCE

Wall Street's three major indexes closed the last session of the week with gains, marking the fourth higher close in a row for the S&P 500 .SPX and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC as investors appeared comfortable with the latest inflation, consumer spending and consumer sentiment readings.

The S&P 500 looked this morning like it wanted another record closing high, but ultimately fell short of its 6090.89 October 28 record close.

However, the Dow Jones Transportation Average .DJT easily confirmed its longest winning streak in years after advancing for 10 straight days. That's the DJT's longest stretch of consecutive daily gains since an 11-day run that ended in August 2020.

Airlines were the DJT's champion gainers on the day with Southwest Airlines LUV.N, up 5.9%, Alaska Air ALK.N adding 2.2% and American Airlines AAL.O rising 3.6%. This was even after Southwest cut its 2025 forecast for key profit metric EBIT on Friday, citing lower revenue due to the recent government shutdown and the impact from higher fuel prices.

The small-cap Russell 2000 .RUT index took a step backwards after a record close on Thursday. And even with a 1% gain, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index .SOX fell short of its late October record close.

The communication services sector .SPLRCL did manage a record close, however, and with a 0.95% gain on the day was the biggest advancer of the S&P 500's 11 major industry sectors. Of the 11, utilities .SPLRCU was the biggest loser, falling 0.98%.

Of note, the CBOE Market Volatility Index .VIX posted its lowest close since September 26.

For the week, the S&P 500 gained 0.31%, the Nasdaq rose 0.91%, and the Dow .DJI climbed 0.5%.

Here is your closing snapshot:

(Sinéad Carew, Terence Gabriel)

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