US Stock Markets Today: S&P Hits New Record High, Nasdaq Advances 0.4%

All the three major US stock indices opened higher on Friday as investors processed a fresh wave of corporate earnings reports.

Minutes into the trade, the S&P 500 rose 0.8% to hit a fresh record of 6,315.61. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.2% to 20,929.75, whereas the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.18% to 44,405.09.

Among the stocks that gained in early trade were Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stocks like American Express Co., Walt Disney Co. and Nike Inc. Cl B dipped in the early minutes of trade.

Among the 11 S&P 500 sectoral indices, two were trading lower, while nine traded higher against the previous day's close. The gains were led by energy, consumer staple and communication services.

As the US market opened, spot gold was trading 0.55% higher at $3,357.28, and Brent crude oil was trading 0.86% higher at $70.12.

The Bloomberg Dollar Index fell 0.4%, with the British pound rose 0.4% to $1.3472, while the Japanese yen rose 0.2% to 148.28 per dollar.

Bitcoin, the largest traded cryptocurrency, slipped 0.6% to $118,792.06.