US markets today: Wall Street inches up in choppy week as S&P 500, Nasdaq hit fresh highs

US stocks edged higher on Friday, keeping major indexes on track to close the week with gains, as upbeat earnings and relief over tariff policy continued to support sentiment. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% in early trade, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 143 points (0.3%). The tech-heavy Nasdaq, which set a record on Thursday, gained 0.4%, AP reported.Shares of Expedia and Gilead Sciences jumped after both companies beat quarterly estimates and raised their outlooks. Treasury yields moved higher as investors parsed corporate results alongside central bank signals.The gains come after a volatile week that included a dip in the Dow and a record-setting rally in tech stocks. The Nasdaq had risen 0.3% on Thursday, while the Dow slipped 0.5%. Intel fell 3.1% after President Trump called for the resignation of its CEO, accusing him of being “highly CONFLICTED.”In contrast, Apple gained 3.2% after CEO Tim Cook appeared with Trump at the White House and announced a $100 billion increase in US manufacturing investment over four years. Semiconductor stocks also rallied on expectations that US-based production will be shielded from the newly imposed 100% tariffs on imported chips. AMD rose 5.7% and Nvidia climbed 0.8%.In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.9% after officials said the US had agreed to fix a tariff discrepancy on Japanese exports. Automakers led the rally, with Toyota up 3.5% and Honda rising 4%. Elsewhere, markets were mostly lower—Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.9%, South Korea’s Kospi declined 0.6%, and Australia’s ASX 200 slipped 0.3%.European markets were mixed in early trade. Germany’s DAX dipped 0.3%, while France’s CAC 40 rose 0.3% and the UK’s FTSE 100 was nearly flat.In the US, futures pointed to a stable open with the S&P 500 and Dow each up modestly. Analysts said the market remains highly sensitive to macro headlines. “Momentum winds are shapeshifters—what looks like a slam dunk on Monday can turn into a face plant by Friday,” said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.Concerns over US growth were stoked by weak jobs data last week, which raised fears that tariff escalation may be hurting the economy. However, strong earnings and hopes of a Fed rate cut helped offset the gloom. The Bank of England also cut its key interest rate on Thursday to support the UK economy.In energy, US benchmark crude rose 16 cents to $64.04 per barrel, while Brent crude gained 19 cents to $66.61. In currency markets, the dollar climbed to 147.66 yen, and the euro weakened to $1.1639.