S&P 500 ticks lower Friday, but benchmark still on pace for big weekly gain after fragile Iran ceasefire

The S&P 500 fell slightly on Friday, though the index was still on track to post a solid weekly gain, as traders kept an eye on the fragile two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.

The broad market index dropped 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite moved higher by 0.4%, bolstered by gains in key semiconductor stocks such as Nvidia and Broadcom. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 243 points, or 0.5%.

Still, the index has jumped more than 3% this week, pacing for its best week since November. The Nasdaq is on pace to rise more than 4%, also on pace for its best week since November. The Dow has gained around 3% week to date.

President Donald Trump on Friday accused Iran of “short term extortion of the World by using International Waterways,” saying in a Truth Social post that its leaders “don’t seem to realize they have no cards” and that “the only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!”

This comes a day after the president warned that Iran should not charge fees to oil tankers that are traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, writing in a post on Truth Social: “They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!”

Oil prices seesawed as concerns around the strait’s reopening hovered over the market. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were last 1.5% lower to $96.37 a barrel, and international benchmark Brent crude futures were last down 1.3% to $94.69 a barrel.

Inflation was top of mind for investors this week as they assessed a number of key reports amid concerns that rising energy prices spurred by the conflict in the Middle East would ripple through the U.S. economy.

March’s consumer price index report showed that inflation was in line with expectations, standing at 0.9% for the month and 3.3% on an annual basis. That incorporated a 10.9% jump in energy costs due to the conflict.

When excluding energy prices, however, the report revealed inflation was tame last month. Core CPI increased just 0.2% for the month and 2.6% compared with a year ago, coming in below expectations. Inflation had been sticky at 3% heading into the Iran war, which has been going on for nearly six weeks.