US stocks couldn't quite pick a direction on Friday, with the Dow Jones slipping 0.09% to 49,398.52 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.13% to 23,559.46. The S&P 500 joined the positive camp, adding 0.09% to reach 6,950.87.

Economic Data Surprises to the Upside

The headline number of the day came from industrial production, which jumped 0.4% month-over-month in December. That matched November's performance and crushed analyst expectations of just 0.1%. Manufacturing, it seems, had a better end to 2024 than economists anticipated.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's general business activity index also showed some improvement, climbing to -16.1 in January from -20.0 the previous month. Still negative, sure, but moving in the right direction.

Sector Movement: Tech Up, Materials Down

Information technology shares gained 0.3% on Friday, providing some lift to the broader market. On the other side of the ledger, materials stocks took a beating with a 1% decline, dragged down by weakness in metals and mining names.

Big Individual Movers

Venus Concept Inc. (VERO) absolutely exploded higher, surging 376% to $6.80 after Madryn Asset Management revealed a 91% stake in an amended 13D filing on Thursday. That's the kind of ownership disclosure that gets attention.

Jeffs Brands Ltd (JFBR) rocketed 196% to $1.65 following news that its subsidiary KeepZone AI entered into a non-exclusive distribution agreement with STI.

Locafy Ltd (LCFY) jumped 73% to $5.44 after announcing an expanded partnership with Experience.com.

On the downside, Sasol Ltd (SSL) dropped 12% to $6.30 after JP Morgan downgraded the stock from Neutral to Underweight.

Sigma Lithium Corp (SGML) fell 10% to $12.87 after reports emerged that Brazil shut down the company's waste piles due to safety concerns.

Erayak Power Solution Group Inc (RAYA) declined 24% to $3.00 as electrical equipment companies traded lower amid broader market weakness.

Commodities Mixed as Oil Gains

Oil traded up 1% to $59.78 per barrel, while precious metals headed in the opposite direction. Gold slipped 0.2% to $4,613.60, and silver took a harder hit with a 3.4% decline to $89.170. Copper also fell 2.7% to $5.8310.

Global Markets Mostly Lower

European shares closed in the red across the board. The eurozone's STOXX 600 fell 0.21%, while Spain's IBEX 35 Index dropped 0.14%. London's FTSE 100 slipped 0.13%, Germany's DAX declined 0.36%, and France's CAC 40 posted the biggest loss at 0.91%.

Asian markets wrapped up Friday mostly lower as well. Japan's Nikkei fell 0.32%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.29%, and China's Shanghai Composite dropped 0.26%. India's BSE Sensex bucked the trend with a 0.23% gain.