US stocks were moving lower Friday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that a 50 basis point rate increase is possible at its upcoming meeting in early May.
Oil prices were down Friday, with the Brent crude and US West Texas Intermediate crude declining 1.81% and 1.88% respectively.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.1%, the S&P 500 was off 1%, and the Nasdaq moved 0.11% lower.
At 1 pm EDT, the Baker Hughes North American rig count will report weekly changes in the number of active operating oil and gas rigs.
In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 1.63% lower, Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed 0.21% lower, and China's Shanghai Composite closed 0.23% higher. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was off 0.78%, Germany's DAX index declined 1.54%, and France's CAC was down 1.52% in Europe's afternoon session.
On the winning side, Vallon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (VLON) shares were soaring more than 91% after it said it is assessing strategic alternatives, which may include a potential merger. Moving iMage Technologies, Inc. (MITQ) shares were up 60% after it announced a strategic partnership with SNDBX. Blueknight Energy Partners (BKEP) shares are up 39% after it agreed to be acquired by chemicals and logistics firm Ergon. And A10 Networks, Inc. (ATEN) was up 13% after it said Thursday that it will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 index.
On the losing side, The Gap, Inc. (GPS) fell 19% after it lowered guidance for Q1 growth sales Thursday. Salarius Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (SLRX) dropped 15% following its announcement about a $2.3 million registered director offering. Cyngn Inc. (CYN) shares lost 6.6%, GSI Technology, Inc. (GSIT) shares were off 6%, and Borqs Technologies, Inc. (BRQS) shares were 11% lower.