Wall Street Breaks 7-Week Losing Streak05/27 15:59

   Technology companies led a broad rally for stocks Friday as Wall Street 
notched its best week in 18 months. The gain broke a seven-week losing streak 
for the market, the longest such stretch since 2001.

   NEW YORK (AP) -- Technology companies led a broad rally for stocks Friday as 
Wall Street notched its best week in 18 months. The gain broke a seven-week 
losing streak for the market, the longest such stretch since 2001.

   The S&P 500 rose 2.5% and finished 6.6% higher for the week, its best weekly 
gain since November 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.8% and the 
tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 3.3%.

   The strong finish for the week came as investors received potentially 
encouraging news about inflation. The Commerce Department said that inflation 
rose 6.3% in April from a year earlier, the first slowdown since November 2020 
and a sign that high prices may finally be moderating, at least for now.

   The report was released as Wall Street looks for any signal that inflation 
could be easing, while trying to figure out just how low stocks might sink.

   "At this point that's all the market needs," said Ross Mayfield, investment 
strategy analyst at Baird. "It's definitely one of the signs you would want to 
see."

   The S&P 500 ended 100.40 points higher at 4,158.24. The Nasdaq rose 390.48 
points to 12,131.13. It was the third straight gain for both indexes. The Dow 
rose 575.77 points to 33,212.96, its sixth-straight gain.

   Smaller company stocks also gained ground. The Russell 2000 rose 49.66 
points, or 2.7%, to 1,887.90.

   The broader market has been in a slump for nearly two months as concerns 
about inflation and rising interest rates pile up. Investors were spooked last 
week by disappointing reports from key retailers, including Walmart and Target, 
which stoked fears about rising inflation hitting profit margins and crimping 
consumer spending.

   Trading remained choppy throughout the week, though the market mostly pushed 
higher, as retailers including Macy's and Dollar General released encouraging 
earnings reports and financial updates.

   Retailers were among the biggest gainers Friday as investors continued 
reviewing the latest round of earnings to get a better sense of just how much 
pain rising inflation is inflicting on businesses and consumers. Beauty 
products company Ulta Beauty surged 12.5% for the biggest gain in the S&P 500 
after raising its profit forecast for the year. Amazon rose 3.7%.

   Disappointing financial updates and earnings weighed on several companies. 
Clothing retailer American Eagle fell 6.6% after reported weak first-quarter 
earnings.

   Inflation is at a four-decade high and has been persistently squeezing 
businesses. Higher costs prompted companies to raise prices on everything from 
food to clothing to protect their margins and consumers remained resilient. 
Russia's invasion of Ukraine worsened the inflation picture by pushing global 
energy and food prices even higher.

   U.S. crude oil prices were relatively stable, but are up nearly 60% in 2022. 
Wheat prices are up about 50% and corn prices are up 30% this year.

   Supply chain problems at the heart of rising inflation were worsened in the 
wake of China's lockdown for several major cities.

   The extra inflation squeeze has made it even more difficult for businesses 
to offset costs and is seemingly prompting a shift in consumer spending away 
from expensive items and toward necessities. It has also raised concerns that 
the Federal Reserve may have an even more difficult time trying to temper the 
impact from inflation.

   The Fed is aggressively raising interest rates to fight inflation, but 
investors are worried that it could potentially push the economy into a 
recession if it moves too aggressively.

   The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps set mortgage rates, slipped 
to 2.74% from 2.75% late Thursday.