Stocks were higher in midday trading Friday, but the gains were not enough to erase the market’s losses from earlier in the week.
The S&P 500 index was up 0.6% as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.6% higher while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.8%. All three indexes are down roughly 1% for the week.
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Investors have paused this week as coronavirus infections have escalated across the U.S. and around the globe. Earnings season is also winding down, with mostly retailers reporting their results.
Ross Stores fell 3% after issuing a full-year forecast that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations, while Foot Locker jumped 9% after blowing past analysts’ forecasts for its latest quarter.
The other potential issue keeping stocks held back is inflation. Earlier this week, minutes from the most recent Federal Reserve meeting showed that officials had discussed reducing the Fed’s bond-buying program later this year to start winding down some of the emergency measures that were implemented during the pandemic. But they stopped short of setting a firm timeline.
The Fed’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming next week could offer hints on when such tapering may begin.
Bond trading was quiet. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note held at 1.24%, little changed from the day before.
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The Associated Press contributed to this article.