Friday continues market decline..
U.S. stock markets clawed back early losses on Friday , but still drifted lower amid growing concerns that the pandemic and its political fallout will breathe new life into an economically damaging trade war that had been in suspended animation since January.
Wall Street rebounded after an initial blow from figures showing the biggest ever monthly drop in retail sales in April, the first full month of lockdowns dictated by public health concerns. April's data for industrial production and manufacturing output were, however, marginally better than expected.
By 10:20 AM ET (1420 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down only 4 points, effectively unchanged on the day, while the S&P 500 was down 0.3%. In a conspicuous contrast to recent trading patterns, the Nasdaq Composite was underperforming, losing 0.4% as semiconductor stocks - typically sensitive to the trade issue - fell more sharply than most. That followed a new executive order tightening the current restrictions on sales of high-performance chips by U.S. companies to Chinese telecoms giant Huawei, which the administration has repeatedly accused of aiding Chinese spying.