The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its fifth straight week of losses on Friday as investors remain cautious amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite also recorded their second week of losses.
For the week, the Dow lost 2%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell 2.9% and 3.5%, respectively.
Here's how the market settled to close out the week:
S&P 500 Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Nasdaq Composite Index
Biden to revoke Russia's "most favored nation" trade status:
President Joe Biden on Friday called for the U.S. to revoke Russia's "most favored nation" stats, which would downgrade Russia as a trading partner and allow for more tariffs on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Canada already removed Russia's most favored nation statue last week, with Biden added that the European Union and G7 nations are expected to take similar actions.
Biden also signed an executive order Friday banning the import of Russian seafood, non-industrial diamonds and liquor into the United States. The order also prohibits the export or sale of American luxury goods to anyone located in Russia, which includes high-end watches and clothes, jewelry, top-shelf liquor and luxury vehicles.
"Putin's war against Ukraine will never be a victory," said Biden in a White House speech on Friday. "he hoped to dominate Ukraine without a fight, he failed. He hoped to fracture European resolve, he failed."
"He hoped to weaken the transatlantic alliance, he failed. he hoped to split apart American democracy, in terms of our positions. He failed," Biden said.
Consumer sentiment sank lower in the first half of March:
Consumer sentiment dropped in March as concerns over inflation and geopolitical conflict weighed on Americans' outlook.
The University of Michigan's preliminary Surveys of Consumers reading in March fell to 59.7, according to the institution's report published Friday. That print was below February's final reading of 62.8. Under the headline, consumers' one-year inflation expectations jumped to 5.4% from February's 4.9% to reach its highest level in over four decades.
"Consumer Sentiment continued to decline due to falling inflation-adjusted incomes, recently accelerated by rising fuel prices as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine," said Richard Curtin, chief economist of Surveys of Consumers, in a statement. "The year-ahead expected inflation rate rose to its highest level since 1981, and expected gas prices posted their largest monthly upward surge in decades. Personal finances were expected to worsen in the year ahead by the largest proportion since the surveys started in the mid-1940s."
Here's how market benchmarks started trading after open:
S&P 500 Index: +0.72% or +30.78 points to 4,290.30
Dow Jones Industrial Average: +0.88% or +292.27 points to 33,466.34
Nasdaq Composite Index: +0.71% or +93.62 points to 13,224.83
