Stock futures are higher as traders monitor U.S.-Iran developments; April jobs report looms: Live updates – CNBC

U.S. equities rose on Friday following a better-than-expected April’s jobs report and as traders eyed developments between the U.S. and Iran.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.84% to end at 7,398.93, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.71% to 26,247.08. Both indexes hit new all-time intraday highs in the session and closed at records. The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 12.19 points, or 0.02%, to settle at 49,609.16.

All three major averages posted weekly gains, propelled by strong earnings. Upbeat tech earnings lifted the Nasdaq to a 4.5% climb, while the S&P 500 gained 2.3%. Both posted six straight winning weeks, marking the longest win streak since 2024 for the broad market benchmark and the tech-heavy index. The Dow Industrials lagged with a week-to-date gain of 0.2%.

Sentiment was bolstered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting that nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 last month, more than the 55,000 that economists polled by Dow Jones were expecting. The U.S. jobless rate also held steady at 4.3%, in line with expectations.

However, oil prices were marginally higher, with West Texas Intermediate crude futures rising 0.64% to $95.42 per barrel, after the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in the Strait of Hormuz. Each side claimed the other struck first. U.S. Central Command said that military forces “intercepted unprovoked Iranian attacks and responded with self-defense strikes” as a trio of U.S. Navy destroyers transited the waterway.

In a Truth Social post Thursday night, President Donald Trump said there was “no damage done to the three Destroyers, but great damage done to the Iranian attackers.” He also reportedly said that the ceasefire is still in effect, saying the strikes against Iranian targets were “just a love tap.”

Investors have been awaiting a response from Iran on the proposal to end the conflict in the Middle East after Iranian state media reported Thursday that Tehran was reviewing messages from the U.S. that were received through Pakistani mediators but had not yet reached a conclusion. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Friday that the U.S. “should know something today.”

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite had hit fresh record highs in the previous session before retreating after a senior Iranian official said that the country would not allow the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz passageway with an “unrealistic plan,” Iran’s state-owned Press TV reported. The official added that Iran would not let the U.S. leave the conflict without paying reparations for the damage it has inflicted.

But Keith Buchanan, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments, is skeptical that the market’s recent run can continue, especially given how much of it is being propped up by optimism surrounding artificial intelligence capital expenditures. That has spurred a rally in memory stocks, with Micron Technology and Sandisk, for example, soaring 15% and 16% on Friday alone. Micron posted a weekly gain of nearly 38%, while Sandisk advanced more than 31%.

“The market is trading valuations that don’t indicate the risk that we see that out there,” Buchanan said, citing the potential for the Middle East conflict to continue longer than expected and the increasingly adverse impacts of that on the consumer.

“It’s a tale of the AI spend and the ripple effects – and earnings as well – that’s absolutely powering an economy that is, without that spending and optimism, probably pretty lackluster,” he continued.

— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger and Elsa Ohlen contributed reporting.