Dow Jones Rises; Big Black Friday Discounts; Apple Eyes Manchester United; Tesla, Ford Recalls

The Dow Jones Industrial Average held the bulk its 0.5% gain at close in the holiday-shortened trading session on Black Friday. The stock market closed at 1 p.m. ET.

The S&P 500, which rose a modest 0.1% earlier, pared back and was flat at closing.

The Nasdaq fell by 0.4% in early trading and stayed at that level today. The Russell 2000 rose 0.4% at market close.

Volume on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq was significantly lower compared to the same time on Wednesday.

Crude oil fell slightly to $77.89 per barrel after plunging on Wednesday. China’s increasing Covid lockdowns and uncertainty over the contested cap on Russian oil are near-term headwinds.

The yield on the 10-year benchmark Treasury note rose 2 basis points to 3.72%.

Black Friday and holiday discounts at big retailers will likely be the deepest ever, according to the National Retail Federation, which anticipates 8 million more shoppers this weekend than last year.

Target (TGT), Macy’s (M) and Best Buy (BBY) have warned they need to offer deeper discounts to offset inflated prices on holiday items. BBY and M stocks are above their 50- and 200-day lines while Target is hovering above its 50-day line.

China’s resurgent Covid cases are leading to further clamp downs. Daily infections surged to a record high, even as China’s zero-Covid policy tightened to battle mounting cases.

Crypto exchange Binance is adding another $1 billion to its initial $1 billion recovery fund to prevent “further contagion effects” after the FTX collapse. The fund will support entities that “through no fault of their own, are facing significant short-term financial difficulties.”

Bybit, another crypto exchange, has followed with a $100 million fund for institutional clients.

News that Dow Jones stock Apple (AAPL) may have plans to acquire Manchester United (MANU) for $7 billion is sending MANU stock rocketing,

Saudi Arabia’s sports minister has also invited private bids for the team and rival Liverpool. Though Apple’s intentions are not clear or confirmed, shares of MANU gapped up over 16% on strong volume while Apple fell over 2%.

Stocks Moving Outside Dow Jones

IBD Leaderboard stock Celsius (CELH) is building a cup base with a 118.29 buy point. Shares are up over 5% on strong volume. Deere (DE) rose slightly after strong earnings on Wednesday. Earlier, shares had broken out of a cup-with-handle base and buy point of 406.12.

Dick’s Sporting Goods (DKS)is breaking out of consolidation with a buy point of 119.91.

Silvergate Capital (SI) rose nearly 4% on news that Block.one has acquired a major stake in the digital bank. Coupa Software (COUP) lifted over 6% on strong volume after news that Vista Equity Partners may acquire the company,

Elsewhere, Tesla (TSLA) CEO and Twitter chief Elon Musk said the social media platform would launch verified blue checkmarks that will be examined by hand before being activated. Meanwhile, Tesla recalled over 80,000 cars to fix a software issue that affects the battery management systems on some of its model S and X vehicles.

Automaker Ford (F) also faced a recall. Some 634,000 SUVs will be examined and repaired, due to fuel leak and fire risks. TSLA shares are ticking lower while Ford rose slightly.

Activision Blizzard (ATVI) has fallen over 4% after reports that Dow Jones component Microsoft (MSFT) will face resistance from the Federal Trade Commission to its plan to acquire that company.

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