04:38 PM EST, 03/07/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed higher Friday, but posted sharp declines for the week amid uncertainty regarding the Trump administration's trade policies.

The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7% to 18,196.2 Friday, while the S&P 500 gained 0.6% to 5,770.2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.5% to 42,801.7. Among sectors, utilities led the gainers, while consumer staples saw the biggest drop.

The Nasdaq slid 3.5% this week, while the S&P 500 was down 3.1%. The Dow fell 2.4%.

"Shifting tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China, alongside threats to extend the same to the (European Union), are sowing uncertainty and instability, triggering market turbulence," Nigel Green, chief executive of financial advisory and asset management firm deVere Group, said Friday.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the central bank would want "greater clarity" around the Trump administration's policy changes before making its next move on interest rates.

"As we parse the incoming information (about policy changes), we are focused on separating the signal from the noise as the outlook evolves," Powell said. "Despite elevated levels of uncertainty, the US economy continues to be in a good place."

The White House could impose tariffs on Canadian lumber and dairy products as early as Friday to match Canada's current tariffs on US goods, Bloomberg News reported, citing Trump. On Thursday, the US administration issued temporary tariff exemptions for Canadian and Mexican goods that comply with a North American trade pact. The US recently doubled its levy on Chinese imports. Canada and China have announced retaliatory measures.

US Treasury yields rose Friday, with the 10-year rate gaining 2.5 basis points to 4.31% and the two-year rate adding 3.9 basis points to 4%.

In economic news, nonfarm payrolls in the US rose by 151,000 last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The consensus was for a 160,000 increase, according to a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The unemployment rate increased to 4.1% from January's 4%, which was the market view for February.

"Job growth is likely to soften over the coming months, as federal layoffs related to (the Department of Government Efficiency) continue to mount and ongoing trade policy uncertainty helps to weigh on near-term hiring intentions," TD Economics said.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased 1% to $67.04 a barrel Friday.

In company news, Broadcom's ( AVGO ) shares jumped 8.6%, the best performer on the S&P 500. The chipmaker late Thursday provided an upbeat outlook for its fiscal second-quarter revenue after delivering a first-quarter beat.

Walgreens Boots Alliance ( WBA ) was among the top S&P 500 gainers Friday, up 7.5%. Late Thursday, the drugstore chain agreed to be acquired and taken private by an affiliate of Sycamore Partners in a deal worth up to $23.7 billion.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise's ( HPE ) shares plunged 12% Friday, the worst performer on the S&P 500. The company late Thursday issued a downbeat full-year earnings outlook and announced plans to cut jobs.

Costco Wholesale ( COST ) declined 6.1% Friday. Late Thursday, the warehouse chain posted a quarterly earnings miss.

Gold fell 0.3% to $2,918.90 per troy ounce, while silver slid 1.2% to $32.95 per ounce.