Stocks Slide More Firmly Into Negative Territory - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After moving modestly lower early in the session, stocks have seen some further downside over the course of the trading day on Friday. The major averages have slid firmly into negative territory, adding to the losses posted in the previous session.

In recent trading, the major averages have climbed off their worst levels of the day but remain in the red. The Dow is down 168.91 points or 0.7 percent at 24,495.98, the Nasdaq is down 74.09 points or 1 percent at 7,163.96 and the S&P 500 is down 18.38 points or 0.7 percent at 2,674.75.

A continued decline by Apple (AAPL) is weighing on the markets, with the tech giant slumping by 3.4 percent after tumbling by 2.8 percent on Thursday.

Apple remains under pressure after an analyst at Morgan Stanley warned of disappointing iPhone sales in the June quarter.

On the other hand, shares of General Electric (GE) have moved sharply higher after the conglomerate reported better than expected adjusted first quarter earnings.

Industrial giant Honeywell (HON) is also seeing some strength after reporting first quarter results that beat estimates and raising its full-year guidance.

Overall trading activity remains somewhat subdued, however, with a lack of major U.S. economic data keeping some traders on the sidelines.

Next week, traders are likely to keep a close eye on reports on new and existing home sales, consumer confidence, durable goods orders and first quarter GDP.

The earnings season also kicks into high gear next week, as a slew of big-name companies are due to release their quarterly results.

Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), Intel (INTC), Microsoft (MSFT), Coca-Cola (KO), Boeing (BA), and Verizon (VZ) are among the companies due to release their results next week.

Sector News

Natural gas stocks continue to see considerable weakness in mid-day trading, with the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index falling by 1.2 percent. The index is pulling back further off the two-month closing high set on Wednesday.

The weakness among natural gas stocks comes despite an increase by the price of the commodity, as natural gas for May delivery is rising $0.055 to $2.715 per million BTUs.

Extending a recent sell-off, tobacco stocks have also moved to the downside. Reflecting the weakness in the sector, the NYSE Arca Tobacco Index is down by 1 percent.

Gold and semiconductor stocks are also seeing notable weakness on the day, while most of the other major sectors are showing more modest moves.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped by 0.9 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in another mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.5 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries are extending the notable decline seen over the two previous sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 1.8 basis points at 2.932 percent.