The Dow Jones Industrial on Friday just missed its first closing record since December.
The blue-chip index rose 35 points, or 0.1%. Though it briefly set its first intraday high since Dec. 4, the Dow has not closed above 45,014.04 since that day.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.4%.
The Dow actually got closer in late July 23 when it closed within four points of a record. It has lagged behind the other big indexes this year as tech stocks pushed the S&P and Nasdaq to 18 and 20 closing highs, respectively.
It was a pretty boring Friday afternoon. An update on retail sales from the Census Bureau was encouraging, by the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey was below expectations.
Worries about looming sector tariffs hitting chip stocks also weighed on the tech sector. President Donald Trump arrived in Alaska for his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin toward the end of the session.
Next week, all eyes will be on Jackson Hole as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will deliver his annual speech while facing immense pressure from the White House to lower interest rates despite signs of tariffs hitting wholesale prices.
“Markets still place a 90% chance on a rate cut at the September meeting,” David Donabedian, co-chief investment officer of CIBC Private Wealth, told Barron’s. “That seems very high, especially since there is another jobs report and several pieces of inflation data before the meeting. For those expecting a foreshadowing of a rate cut at Jackson Hole, they may be disappointed. I expect him to repeat the ‘data dependent’ mantra over and over.”