Most US stocks close lower on Friday as nationwide ground stop weighs on airlines

US chip and airline stocks fell on Friday (13 November). The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.91% and the S&P 500 lost 0.40%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.10%.

Airline stocks fell in the final minutes of regular US trading. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had earlier reported serious problems with air traffic control communications and, citing exceptional circumstances and safety concerns, ordered a nationwide halt to departing flights. The NYSE Arca Airline Index, which tracks airline stocks, closed down 1.4%.

United Airlines posted the biggest decline, falling 1.74%, followed by JetBlue Airways, down 1.31%; American Airlines, down 1.05%; Southwest Airlines, down 0.64%; and Delta Air Lines, down 0.35%.

In technology stocks, Reuters reported that markets continued to focus on Nvidia's succession plans following the resignation of its former chief executive Jensen Huang. Nvidia shares closed down 2%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 3.4%. AMD closed 8.8% lower and Broadcom fell 4.8%.

The Financial Times reported that, as Nvidia's board searches for a successor to Huang, it has approached Rene Haas, chief executive of leading UK chip designer Arm Holdings.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 229.82 points on Friday to close at 25,136.27. The S&P 500 lost 30.73 points to 7,561.67, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 50.46 points to 52,347.55.

All three major US stock indices rose over the week, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 snapping four-week losing streaks.

In currency markets, the US dollar index rose for a fourth consecutive day, gaining 0.17% on Friday to 103.40, its highest level since April 2025. The euro fell 0.29% against the dollar to US$1.1021.

The US producer price index for final demand rose 6.5% year on year in October, slightly below market expectations. However, US consumer prices rose more than expected, while Federal Reserve officials made comments favouring interest rate increases. Reuters reported that traders stepped up bets on Fed rate rises.

The CME FedWatch tool showed that federal funds futures traders priced in an 11% probability of a 50-basis-point rate rise at the Fed's 8–9 December meeting, up from zero a week earlier.

The two-year US Treasury yield edged up 0.34 basis points to 4.867% in late trading. Its weekly rise was the largest since the first week of October 2024. Oil prices were little changed on Friday but fell for a second consecutive week.