US STOCKS-Wall St climbs as oil slips; SpaceX spectrum deal weighs on telecoms

US ‌stock ​indexes edged higher on Friday as oil prices retreated on easing Middle East supply concerns, though telecom shares remained under pressure after SpaceX's spectrum acquisition raised competitive concerns across the sector. Oil prices fell after US President Donald Trump said on Thursday the country ‌will not attack Iran before US midterm elections next month, easing supply concerns.

Brent crude prices were down around 1%, but were still trading over the $100-a-barrel mark. US Treasury yields were also calmer, with the benchmark 10-year yield steady at 5.25% but holding close to the 24-year high of 5.364% hit on Wednesday.

The benchmark S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq were headed for ‌weekly gains despite pulling back over the previous two sessions as optimism around an AI-driven third-quarter earnings season pushed both the indexes to record highs earlier this week. The blue-chip ‌Dow was also on track for slim weekly gains and the equal-weighted S&P 500 index was on track to snap a seven-week losing streak.

Megacap growth stocks were broadly higher, with Tesla rising 1.8%, Nvidia up 1.5%, and Microsoft up 1.2%. Chip stocks were broadly higher a day after dropping sharply following reports that OpenAI's annualized revenue was $20 billion below prior expectations.

Ten out of eleven sectors advanced, with real estate and consumer discretionary leading ⁠the gains, each rising ​by about 1%. The S&P 500 communication services ⁠was marginally lower after SpaceX gained 3.2% after the rocket and satellite maker struck a deal to acquire a nationwide low-band spectrum portfolio, posing a direct challenge to US wireless giants.

Telecom firms traded lower, with T-Mobile ⁠US down 9.1%, AT&T falling 7.4% and Verizon easing 6.3%. At 9:42 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 136.24 points, or 0.27%, to 51,367.88, the S&P 500 gained 25.23 points, or 0.32%, ​to 7,790.59 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 130.99 points, or 0.48%, to 27,324.33.

The quarterly earnings season gathers pace next week with big banks on deck. Optimism around ⁠strong earnings continues to support US stocks despite geopolitical and rate concerns. "The banks are great to figure out: are people borrowing, and what the situation looks like right now ... that is also going to give us ⁠data ​as to what the Fed may or may not do," said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners.

Among individual movers, Humana jumped 16.6% after US government data showed 95% of the health insurer's members were in Medicare Advantage plans rated four stars or higher for 2027. Apple fell 2.2% after a media report that the iPhone maker has ⁠told some suppliers to cut production of components for its newly launched iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, as soaring memory chip costs and price increases ⁠dampen consumer demand.

Delta Air Lines dropped 3%, as ⁠the company cut its annual profit forecast by nearly a quarter at the midpoint of the range. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.65-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.53-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 4 new 52-week highs and ‌3 new lows, while the Nasdaq ‌Composite recorded 17 new highs and 75 new lows.