U.S. stocks flat early Friday, but point up for the week
- Main U.S. indexes little changed
- Apr Leading Index chg MM -0.6% vs -0.3% estimate
- Euro STOXX 600 index off ~0.2%
- Dollar, crude edge up; gold, bitcoin up >1%
- U.S. 10-Year Treasury yield edges up to ~4.40%
U.S. STOCKS FLAT EARLY FRIDAY, BUT POINT UP FOR THE WEEK
Wall Street's main indexes are little changed early on Friday. That said, they are heading for weekly gains on growing expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts this year.
The S&P 500 
SPX and Nasdaq 
IXIC are on pace for their fourth straight week of gains. The Dow 
DJI is on track to rise for a fifth week in a row.
Meanwhile, U.S. Treasury yields are edging up as investors await fresh clues on how many times the U.S. Federal Reserve is likely to cut rates this year.
Minutes from the Fed’s most recent policy meeting, due next week, may offer new insight.
S&P 500 sectors are mixed with relatively modest changes. Energy 
SPN, up around 0.6%, is the leading gainer, while healthcare 
S5HLTH off only around 0.3% is taking the biggest hit.
Of note, financials 
SPF are on pace to set a new closing high.
Under the surface, gold stocks (.HUI) are an outperformer. The HUI is up about 2.5% and has hit a more than one-year high. This index, however, is still down 56% from its record high set in 2011.
Here is a snapshot of where markets stood around 1020 ET:
(Terence Gabriel)
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FOR FRIDAY'S EARLIER LIVE MARKETS POSTS:
NYSE BREADTH BREATHES EASY, NASDAQ NOT SO MUCH - CLICK HERE
ROTATION FROM SERVICES BACK TO GOODS - CITI - CLICK HERE
CLEAN POSITIONING POINTS TO FURTHER RECORD HIGHS FOR EQUITIES - JEFFERIES - CLICK HERE
CLIENTS IN TWO CAMPS ON EURO AREA RECOVERY - BOFA - CLICK HERE
MARKET PRESSES PAUSE ON STOXX RALLY - CLICK HERE
FUTURES SIGNAL DROPS AS TRADERS AWAIT EURO INFLATION - CLICK HERE
MARKETS PONDERS RATES PATH, SHARES LISTLESS - CLICK HERE