US stocks end mixed, shows best monthly performance in 1.5 years

US equities ended on a mixed note Friday, May 30, but recorded the best monthly performance in nearly 1.5 years as global trade tensions eased.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.13%, or 54 points, to 42,270 points, recording weekly and monthly rises of 1.6% and 2.31%, respectively.

Similarly, the S&P 500 Index kept flat at 5,911 points despite posting a weekly gain of 1.88% and a monthly rise of 3.96%- the highest since November 2023.

The Nasdaq Composite dropped around 0.32%, or 62 points, to 19,113 points. The technology index recorded weekly and monthly gains of 2% and 6.32%, respectively.

As for the European indices, the STOXX Europe 600 added 0.14% to 548 points, posting weekly gains of 0.65%.

The FTSE 100 inched up 0.64% to 8,772 points. The DAX 40 rose 0.27% to 23,997 points, while the CAC 40 retreated 0.36% to 7,751 points.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 shed 1.2% to 37,965 points. TOPIX lost 0.35% to 2,801 points. Both indices recorded weekly rises of 2.15% and 2.4%, respectively.

In the oil market, Brent crude futures for July delivery — which expired today — fell by 0.39%, or 25 cents, to $63.90 per barrel, deepening their weekly losses to 1.36%. However, they ended May with a 4.7% monthly gain.

Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for July delivery declined by 0.24%, or 15 cents, to $60.79 per barrel. Despite a weekly loss of 1.2%, they recorded a monthly gain of 5.5%.

As for gold, August futures — the most actively traded — dropped by 0.85%, or $28.5, to $3315.40 per ounce, marking weekly and monthly losses of 2.33% and 1%, respectively.

Investor focus during the final session of May was centered on assessing the outlook for the ongoing trade war, following U.S. President Trump's accusation earlier today that China had violated the truce reached between the two nations on May 12.

Separately, official data released today showed a slowdown in the annual core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation rate — the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge — to 2.5% in April from 2.6% in March, bolstering hopes that monetary easing efforts will continue.