Investing.com - A last-minute surge that trimmed the day's losses let the Dow extend its weekly winning streak to seven. For most of the day, concerns the U.S. and China won't be able to resolve their bitter trade dispute before a key deadline kept stocks on the back foot.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.25%, the S&P 500 rose 0.07%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.14%. The Nasdaq also finished the weekly higher -- barely -- for a seventh-straight week.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday the United States and China were far from an agreement ahead of the next round of trade talks in Beijing slated for next week.
Without a trade deal, or an extension to the March 1 deadline, President Donald Trump has threatened to raise tariffs on China to 25% from 10%, a move that could escalate the trade dispute and hurt risk sentiment.
The lack of progress on trade comes as investors fear the United States' trade dispute with the European Union over the bloc's trade practices in the auto industry could be next.
The Commerce Department by Feb. 17 is expected to release a broad report on auto imports, which could include a recommendation that tariffs be implemented on European autos.
Tensions over trade also played out in the energy sector as oil prices struggled for much of the day amid fears a U.S.-China trade war could hurt oil demand from Beijing, the biggest crude importer. WTI futures settled up 8 cents at $52.72 a barrel, and Brent, the global benchmark, settled up 47 cents to $62.10.
Financials also kept a lid on gains in the broader market, falling 0.55% as U.S. government bond yields fell for a fourth-straight day, as concerns about global growth weighed.
Tech stocks, however, managed to sidestep the selling in the broader market, led by sharp gains in Motorola Solutions and Electronic Arts.
Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) surged 13% on better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) rallied 16% as its "Apex Legends" game reached 10 million players within 72 hours of its official launch. Apex Legends is seen as a challenger to Fortnite, a game whose popularity has hurt the growth of established video game publishers like EA and Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO).
Elsewhere on the corporate earnings front, Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) fell 0.95%, closing well off session lows of $85.55, after reporting fourth-quarter earnings of $1.33 per share on revenue of $1.39 billion. That missed estimates compiled by Investing.com for earnings of $1.68 a share on revenue of $1.52 billion.
Top S&P 500 Gainers and Losers Today:
Coty (NYSE:COTY), Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) and Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) were among the top S&P 500 gainers for the session.
Goodyear (NASDAQ:GT), Henry Schein (NASDAQ:HSIC) and Hanesbrands (NYSE:HBI) were among the worst S&P 500 performers of the session.