S&P 500 in wild swings as Fed officials talk up need for higher rates

Investing.com -- The S&P 500 struggled for direction Friday, as investors weighed up easing Treasury yields against remarks from Federal Reserve officials who continue to echo the central bank’s plan to keep rates higher for longer.

The S&P 500 fell 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%, or 100 points, Nasdaq was flat.

Fed’s officials lean into higher rates for longer stance, but Treasury yields take breather

U.S. Federal Reserve officials said further rate hikes could be required as inflation remains too hot for comfort.

Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said Friday it “will likely be appropriate” to not only lift rates higher but also hold them at restrictive levels for some time to bring back to the central bank’s 2%.

Boston Fed president Susan Collins, meanwhile, also said additional rate hikes are "not off the table."

The remarks come just days after the Fed skipped a rate hike on Wednesday, and also reduced the number of rate cuts to two from four next year.

Apple’s iPhone 15 officially on sale worldwide

Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 15 hits shelves in 40 countries worldwide amid optimism that the latest iPhones will encourage a wave of upgrades from customers who have previously chosen to hang onto their older iPhone models.

“iPhone 15 pre-orders are still tracking much stronger than we and the Street originally expected and up roughly 10%-12% from iPhone 14 based on our analysis,” Wedbush said in a note.

Amazon unveils plans to Prime Video ads

Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) remained above the flatline after giving up some gains as the e-commerce giant unveiled plans to include limited advertisements on Prime Video streaming service starting next year.

The move to attract advertising dollars is expected to help offset rising costs as its spending on content jumped to nearly 30% last year.

Activision Blizzard jumps as takeover deal set to clear final hurdle

Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI) jumped more than 2% as its takeover by Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is set to clear the final regulatory hurdle after UK said it would accept concessions offered by Microsoft.

Ford makes progress in labor talks with United Auto Workers, but GM and Stellantis

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) jumped more than 3% after making progress with the UAW avoided expanded strikes at its plants. General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) and Stellantis NV (NYSE:STLA) were also higher even as the duo faced expanded strikes.

"At noon Eastern today, all parts distributions centers at General Motors and Stellantis will be on strike,” Union President Shawn Fain said Friday. "We will shut down parts distribution until those two companies come to their senses and come to the table with a serious offer," he added.