Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened mixed on Friday, as markets recovered from Thursday's sharp downward trend due to mounting concerns over Portugal's banking sector and as investors eyed the release of more earnings reports to come.
Trading volumes were expected to remain thin on Friday, as no U.S. data was to be released throughout the session.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow 30 slipped 0.19%, the S&P 500 fell 0.18%, while the NASDAQ Composite added 0.13%.
Global equities came under broad selling pressure on Thursday amid growing fears over financial troubles at the family-owned holding companies behind Espirito Santo Financial Group, Portugal's largest listed bank.
Markets seemed to shrug off a report by the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday, saying that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending July 5 declined by 11,000 to a 304,000 from the previous week’s total of 315,000.
Among earnings, Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) reported revenue just above estimates, but shares in the U.S. lender still plummeted 1.43%.
Also on the downside, the Gap (NYSE:GPS) retreated 0.51% after the clothing retailer posted late Thursday an unexpected drop in comparable-store sales in June.
Meanwhile, Reynolds American (NYSE:RAI) saw shares rise 0.24% amid reports the cigarette producer is closing in on a purchase of Lorillard (NYSE:LO) and may announce a deal as soon as next week.
General Motors (NYSE:GM) added to gains, up 0.08%, despite reports German rival Volkswagen (XETRA:VOWG) outsold the U.S. automaker in China in the first half of the year, keeping it on track to remain the best-selling foreign car company in the world’s biggest vehicle market.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST), scheduled to report second-quarter earnings later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed. The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 inched up 0.04%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.20%, Germany's DAX edged down 0.11%, while Britain's FTSE 100 dipped 0.02%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dipped 0.02%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.34%.