U.S. stocks

rose on Friday following a volatile week, as

U.S. President Donald Trump

attempted to assuage fears around the trade war with China while a round of strong regional bank earnings brought a measure of calm to the recently turbulent sector.

The

S&P 500 Index

was  up 0.3 per cent after swinging between gains and losses for much of the session. The tech heavy

Nasdaq 100

was up 0.4 per cent. The Cboe Volatility Index edged lower to around 23.

In an interview with Fox Business, Trump said that threatened high tariffs with China were “not sustainable,” easing fears of more escalation in the trade conflict between the two countries. Meanwhile, U.S. bank stocks stabilized as a new set of earnings from regional lenders helped alleviate concerns over credit quality that spiked when Zions Bancorp and Western Alliance Bancorp said they were victims of fraud.

The S&P 500 remains near a record high and is on track to notch a gain this week. Still, investors said the recent swings in stocks have scope to continue, given the ongoing trade fight with China, a third-quarter earnings season that is now in full swing and October’s reputation as a volatile month for equities.

“After defying seasonal weakness in August and September, markets are now feeling the chill of October,” Keith Lerner, chief investment officer and chief market strategist at Truist Advisory Services, wrote in a note published on Friday. “Volatility has crept back in, with equity swings widening and pockets of weakness emerging.”

Regional banks

Shares of regional lenders held steady after plunging during Thursday’s session. The latest crop of earnings helped bolster the group, with Truist Financial Corp. and Fifth Third Bancorp all rising at the open after reporting lower provisions for credit losses than analysts expected. The reports eased fears that sent the S&P Regional Banks Select Industry Index down 6.3 per cent on Thursday.

With weeks of earnings ahead, that relief could prove temporary.

“Fears are rising that the rush into credit in the last two years will lead to a wave of bad loans and write-downs, which could affect the banking sector, similar to what happened with

Silicon Valley Bank

in 2023,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

  • The debasement debate is rippling across global markets
  • Markets swoon on fears of ‘Liberation Day’ part two

Among single stocks, Eli Lilly & Co. dropped as Trump said the price of blockbuster diabetes drug Ozempic could come down to US$150 a month. CSX Corp. rose after the fell transportation company reported third-quarter revenue that came above consensus estimates. Micron Technology Inc. declined as Reuters reported that the chipmaker is planning to stop suppling server chips to data centers in China.

Bloomberg.com