US stocks staged a sluggish but welcome recovery on Friday after a turbulent session on Thursday. The opening hours were indecisive, with prices chopping back and forth as traders weighed whether the slide still had further to run.
Sentiment improved after New York Fed president John Williams said he sees room for a cut in the near term. His comments pushed rate-cut odds for December sharply higher, with traders pricing in a 75% chance of another move, up from around 40% on Thursday. The remarks land at a time when the Fed appears increasingly divided heading into its final meeting of the year.
With one hour to go before the US close, the Nasdaq was up 1.5%, the S&P 500 was 1.4% higher and the Dow Jones gained 1.4%.
Even with today’s rebound, it is shaping up to be a rough month for Wall Street. The S&P 500 is on track for its worst November since 2008 as concerns build over an AI-fuelled bubble. Nvidia’s blowout results on Wednesday did little to ease that tension. All three major indices are also set for weekly losses, having ended Thursday at their lowest levels since September.
Whether Friday’s calm holds is still an open question. Many traders argue Thursday’s wash-out may have been the final clearing of overstretched positions, though confidence remains thin.
A fresh read on consumer confidence from the University of Michigan showed sentiment deteriorated further in November, dropping to 51 as worries over rising prices and job security persisted.
Bitcoin also extended its decline, sinking as low as $81,000 before rebounding to $83,989 by 20:10 GMT. It is now on course for its worst month since the crypto collapse of 2022.
In London, the FTSE finished flat after early losses, with sentiment cautious following Wall Street’s sharp Thursday sell-off.