Stocks slide at the open as market tries to break four-week losing streak: Live updates

U.S. stocks fell Friday morning as the S&P 500 tries to snap a 4-week losing streak caused by trade policy turmoil, recession fears and a rollover in megacap technology shares.

The S&P 500 fell 0.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite pulled back 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 321 points, or about 0.8%.

The action follows a losing session for the major averages. On Thursday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.3%. The 30-stock Dow lost 11.31 points, or 0.03%.

Nevertheless, the S&P 500 is on pace for a 0.4% advance week to date, and is poised to break a four-week losing streak. The benchmark briefly fell into correction territory at one point during the monthlong rout. It sits about 8% from its record high going into Friday, short of the 10% correction level, as it tried to mount a comeback from the turmoil.

The bulk of the market’s gains came on Wednesday when Federal Reserve policymakers kept their forecast for two rate cuts this year.

Tariff worries are also weighing on companies, according to Michael Green, chief strategist at Simplify Asset Management. 

“Companies are increasingly citing confusion and uncertainty around their planning and capital spending and hiring decisions — and when they pause, it means that they’re slowing down,” he said. “There’s an element of that playing out in the markets.” 

FedEx was hurting sentiment, with shares of the bellwether transportation company down 11% in early trading Friday. FedEx cut its earnings outlook, citing “weakness and uncertainty in the U.S. industrial economy.”

Nike shares were off by 8% after the shoe and apparel giant said sales this quarter would miss analysts’ expectations because of tariffs and falling consumer confidence. The retailer’s comments were having knock-on effects within the sector, as shares of Foot Locker slipped more than 2% and rival Under Armour fell more than 1%.

The Dow is on track for a 1.1% gain this week, marking its best weekly performance since late January. The Nasdaq, however, is off about 0.4% in the period, heading for its fifth straight losing week and its longest stretch of weekly losses since May 2022.