The Dow Jones Industrial Average kicked off the week with its eighth consecutive day of gains as trade tensions between the United States and China have eased. Both the S&P 500 Index and the NASDAQ Composite also posted gains. The ease was short-lived as Stocks slipped amid trade, growth, and geopolitical stress, closing in the red on Tuesday. Healthcare and Technology brands led the retreat. Stocks stepped up amid a variety of economic news on Wednesday, as industrial production gained 0.7% in April, marking the third consecutive monthly increase. The uptick in March was also revised higher. Meanwhile, housing starts decreased by 3.7% in April, although single-family starts were 0.1% ahead of March’s number and they are up by 10.5% from April 2017. Stocks dipped again on Thursday, while initial jobless claims increased for the week ended May 12. The Department of Labor report showed new claims climbed by 11,000 to 222,000. Indices ended mixed on Friday with the Dow closing slightly in the green. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ traded fractionally lower, weighed down by Energy and Financial sector stocks. For the week, both the Dow and S&P 500 closed the week lower, about 0.5%, while the Nasdaq fell a bit more.
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