Stock markets in New York entered the weekend with small gains on Friday. The broad S&P 500 closed on a new record. Among other things, attention was focused on large tech companies.
Members of the US House of Representatives want to curb the power of Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google, which is part of Alphabet and made a series of proposals to that effect.
The measures follow a lengthy investigation into the four companies, which was concluded last year by a special antitrust committee of the lower house. The company then concluded that Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google have monopoly positions and that antitrust laws need to be revised better to address the unique challenges of competition in digital markets.
This may mean that the tech companies will have to sell parts. But the proposals still have a long way to go before legislation is passed under which President Joe Biden can sign. Investors in Big Tech didn’t seem too concerned yet. Apple stock closed the session with a 1 percent gain. Facebook, Alphabet and Amazon closed 0.4 percent lower.
Markets also kept an eye on developments surrounding the G7 summit in the United Kingdom. Investors are also hopeful that the Federal Reserve will not tamper with the support measures for the time being, which was also heard from the G7 summit itself.
According to experts, the high inflation is temporary, leaving room for continued support from the central banks. The Fed’s interest rate meeting is scheduled for next week.