STOCK MARKET NEWS: Dow, S&P, Nasdaq gain, airlines deal with July 4th travel chaos

U.S. stocks bounced between losses and gains ultimately closing higher across the board with momentum picking up in the final hour of trading. Utilities and consumer discretionary companies led all 11 of the S&P sectors higher. In commodities, oil closed fractionally higher at $108.43. Financial markets are closed on Monday for the July 4th holiday. 

Chick-fil-A has maintained its position as America’s favorite restaurant for eight years in a row, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). 

That’s in spite of the fact that overall, consumers prefer full-service restaurants over fast food. 

The survey found that Americans’ satisfaction with fast food restaurants decreased by 2.6% in the last year, earning the category a score of 76. Meanwhile, full-service restaurants maintained their score of 80 from 2021. 

Former Federal Reserve Vice Chair Randal Quarles argues that the Fed’s rate hikes will have a greater slowing effect on inflation than they’re modeling.

Automotive sector analyst Lauren Fix weighs in on the ‘billions of dollars’ in revenues the automotive industry has lost on ‘Cavuto: Coast to Coast.’

GM now expects to earn as much as $1.9B down from the prior estimate of $2.4B due to the ongoing supply chain crisis.

Slatestone Wealth chief market strategist Kenny Polcari on getting a bigger ‘bang for your buck’ as stocks rise and the 10-year yield falls.

U.S. stocks inched lower as the new month kicked off following the worst first half of a year since 1970 with investors cautious heading into the long July 4th holiday. General Motors cuts its profit outlook blaming supply chain delays. In commodities, oil hovered at $108 per barrel. 

U.S. equity futures traded lower Friday morning, starting the new month the same way the old month ended. On Thursday, Wall Street closed out its worst quarter since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. It was the worst first half since the first six months of 1970.

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Benchmark U.S. crude traded around $107 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard was around $114 a barrel.

The OPEC oil cartel and allied producing nations decided Thursday to increase production of crude oil, but the amount will likely do little to relieve high gasoline prices at the pump.

Bitcoin traded below $20,000 as July begins. The cryptocurrency has traded down for four consecutive days heading into Friday. Bitcoin ended June down more than 41%. Year-to-date Bitcoin is down more than 59%. Ether is above $1,000. Dogecoin is at 6 cents.

The price of a gallon of regular gasoline slipped on Friday morning to $4.842, according to AAA. The price on Thursday was at $4.857. Gas has declined for 14 straight days. Diesel slipped as well to $5.760 down from $5.772.