Dow Rises About 100 Points, Chicago PMI Slips Sharply in August

U.S. stocks were mostly higher Friday morning, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up about 100 points.

After Friday's open, the Dow rose 0.19% to 53,673.21, while the Nasdaq fell 0.01% to 26,541.21. The S&P 500 also gained 0.09% to 7,737.82.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

The communication services sector rose 1.1% on Friday.

The information technology sector fell 0.3% on Friday.

Headline News

The Chicago Business Barometer fell to 47.1 in August, down from a prior reading of 57.6 and below the market expectation of 58.3.

Stocks on the Rise

FingerMotion Inc shares surged 309% to $0.71.

Quoin Pharmaceuticals Ltd – ADR shares rose 43% to $7.39, following consecutive premarket updates detailing positive clinical trial results and a large institutional financing plan.

Cyabra Inc shares also gained 58% to $0.49, after securing a six-figure annual contract with a leading interactive entertainment company to protect its player community.

Stocks on the Decline

BioXcel Therapeutics Inc shares plunged 73% to $0.20, after the company announced it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Kaixin Holdings shares fell 46% to $0.81.

Antelope Enterprise Holdings Ltd shares dropped 35% to $3.30, after announcing a private placement of 15 million Class A ordinary shares at $1.266 per share, along with warrants for 15 million shares exercisable at $0.50 each, raising total proceeds of $18.99 million.

Commodities

In commodities, crude oil fell 1.1% to $82.63, while gold declined 0.1% to $4,661.10.

Silver rose 3.2% on Friday to $71.675, and copper gained 0.4% to $6.7175.

Eurozone

European markets traded higher today. The Eurozone STOXX 600 index rose 0.4%, Spain's IBEX 35 gained 0.6%, London's FTSE 100 added 0.1%, Germany's DAX rose 0.5%, and France's CAC 40 climbed 1%.

Asia-Pacific Markets

Asia-Pacific markets closed mostly higher on Friday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 up 0.41%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gaining 0.08%, China's Shanghai Composite falling 0.11%, and India's BSE Sensex rising 0.43%.

Economic Data

The Chicago Business Barometer fell to 47.1 in August, down from a prior reading of 57.6 and below the market expectation of 58.3.