Friday's early trade: S&P, Dow lower as oil plunge; chipmakers lift Nasdaq

The S&P 500 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell on Friday as a steep drop in oil prices pressured energy stocks, but losses were limited by gains in chipmakers and retail stocks. US crude declined more than 4.2 percent to $67.71 per barrel after Saudi Arabia and Russia said they were ready to ease supply curbs that have pushed prices to their highest since 2014.
The S&P energy index slid 3.3 percent, on track for its biggest one-day percentage decline since February 5. Chevron dropped more than 4 percent, while Exxon fell 2.5 percent and were the biggest drags on the Dow. Stock markets this week have been roiled by trade tensions with China, US threat of imposing tariffs on imported cars and uncertainty over a US-North Korea summit.
President Donald Trump said on Friday the summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could still take place on June 12 as originally planned, a day after canceling it. "At this point investors are shrugging off Washington headlines because in most cases they won't affect the markets and Washington has a hard time following through what they say," said Arian Vojdani, investment strategist at MV Financial in Bethesda, Maryland.
At 12:58 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 69.89 points, or 0.28 percent, at 24,741.87, the S&P 500 was down 7.75 points, or 0.28 percent, at 2,720.01 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 16.25 points, or 0.22 percent, at 7,440.68. Trading volumes were thin ahead of the long weekend, with markets shut on Monday for the Memorial Day holiday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was boosted by chipmakers, led by a 2.7 percent jump in Broadcom.