NEW YORK (AFP) – US stocks wobbled Friday as investors faced a long holiday weekend with no economic releases for guidance and fresh unrest in the Middle East.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 15.33 points (0.12 percent) to 12,333.47 in early trades, while the broad-market S&P 500 fell 0.21 point (0.02 percent) to 1,340.22.
The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite rose 1.32 points (0.05 percent) to 2,832.90.
"The S&P 500 hit a 32-month high Thursday. Equity market returns remain supported by improving economic trends and a strong corporate sector," said Kimberly DuBord at Briefing.com.
Amid a lack of economic releases and a bare calendar Monday, when markets are closed for a public holiday, investors appeared bound to extend the rally, shrugging off warnings the market is overextended.
"Despite the gains, valuations remain attractive and, given the wealth of cash on corporate balance sheets raising the specter of dividend hikes and share buybacks, stocks continue to charm investors," DuBord said.
Investors also kept an eye on spreading unrest in the oil-rich Middle East after uprisings ousted the Tunisian and Egyptian presidents in recent weeks. Protesters trying to topple more of the region's rulers staged fresh mass demonstrations Friday and buried the victims of crackdowns by embattled regimes.
On Thursday Wall Street equities markets rose to new two-year highs, buoyed by a report from the Philadelphia branch of the central bank a surge in regional manufacturing activity.
The Dow added 0.24 percent, the S&P 500 rose 0.31 percent and the Nasdaq climbed 0.21 percent to close at its highest level since October 31, 2007.
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