Nasdaq lags peers as Netflix, chip stocks drag; AmEx lifts Dow

Progress on bringing down inflation has "stalled" this year, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said, becoming the latest U.S. central banker to drop an earlier focus on the coming need for interest rate cuts.

"We're in an environment that's characterized by strong growth, strong corporate earnings, and elevated policy rates," said Jacob Manoukian, U.S. head of investment strategy at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

"Just the adjustment to get to that new state of mind for investors is a little bit difficult, which is why you're seeing the turbulence."

Equities were rattled this week as investors readjusted their expectations over by how much the Fed would cut rates this year, with both the S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow poised for a third weekly decline, while the Nasdaq was set for its fourth consecutive weekly loss, if current trend holds.

Cushioning the blue-chip Dow, American Express added 4.6% after the credit card lender's first-quarter profit surpassed Wall Street estimates.

Chip-related stocks bore the brunt of the selloff, with AI giant Nvidia down 3.1%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index lost 2.0%, on track for its worst weekly performance so far this year.

Meanwhile, explosions echoed over an Iranian city on Friday in what sources described as an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and indicated it had no plans for retaliation - a response that appeared gauged towards averting a region-wide war.

The CBOE Volatility index, also known as Wall Street's "fear gauge", was last up 0.56 points at 18.56, after breaching the psychologically important level of 20 earlier in the session.

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sectors traded higher, with energy stocks amongst top gainers with a 1.1% advance, while communication services was the worst hit with a 1.7% fall.

At 11:43 a.m. ET, the Industrial Average was up 156.03 points, or 0.41%, at 37,931.41, the S&P 500 was down 19.23 points, or 0.38%, at 4,991.89, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 171.95 points, or 1.10%, at 15,429.55.

Shares of Paramount Global jumped 8.2% after a person familiar with the matter told Reuters that Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo Global Management are discussing making a joint bid for the company.

Fifth Third Bancorp gained 5.4% after the lender beat first-quarter profit estimates.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.61-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.17-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded four new 52-week highs and five new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded ten new highs and 125 new lows.