The Nasdaq composite lagged amid a sell-off in technology shares Friday while the other major indexes ended higher thanks to strength in oil stocks.
XThe Nasdaq fell 0.3%, for a slight loss for the week. Weakness in software, data storage and other technology industry groups hit the composite hard. The Russell 2000 — which, like the Nasdaq, also has a big weighting in techs — fell 0.3%.
The Dow Jones industrial average snapped an eight-day losing streak, adding 0.5%. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% but still finished down modestly for the week.
The oil sector dominated Friday's leadership. The six best performing industry groups were all in the energy sector. Drilling, exploration, oilfield service and oil machinery industry groups rose 2.5% to 3.7%.
OPEC members agreed to raise production by 1 million barrels a day, settling a dispute that had caused uncertainty in the crude oil market. Normally, higher production would mean lower prices. But the decision was bullish for oil prices because the planned output boost will bring markets closer to balance, an Edward Jones analyst said.
SPDR Energy ETF (XLE) rose 2% despite giving back some earlier gains.
But the tech sector struggled. Certainly the weakness in the software sector had much to do with Red Hat (RHT). The cloud software company gave cautious guidance for the current quarter and full year, sending its shares to the lowest level since February. The stock gapped down below its 50-day moving average in huge volume, collapsing 14%.
Meanwhile, Needham downgraded chip-gear maker KLA-Tencor (KLAC) to hold from buy Friday, citing concerns about slower foundry investments in the second half of 2018. KLA shares slid more than 3% in heavy trading.
Automakers also struggled after President Trump threatened via Twitter to impose a 20% tariff on cars imported from the European Union. IBD's automakers' group fell 3.5%.
RELATED:
Cloud Computing: Find Top Cloud Stocks And Track Industry Trends
Top Semiconductor Equipment Stock Downgraded On Slower Foundry Sales
When To Sell: Is Your Stock 'Living' Beneath The 10-Week Line?
