04:46 PM EST, 02/28/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed higher Friday as markets reacted to falling out of discussions regarding rare earth minerals between President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 both gained 1.6%, closing at 18,847.3 and 5,954.5, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4% to 43,840.9.

US Treasury yields slid, with the 10-year rate sinking 8.1 basis points to 4.21% and the two-year rate dropping 9.5 basis points to 3.99%.

April West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 0.5% to $70.03 a barrel Friday.

In economic news, US personal consumption expenditures declined 0.2% in January in line with estimates from a Bloomberg poll that expected a slowdown in spending growth to 0.2%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The Federal Reserve's preferred core measure, which excludes food and energy, decelerated to 2.6% in January from 2.9% the month before. Sequentially, the core measure accelerated to a 0.3% gain. Both figures were in line with analysts' expectations.

The Trump-appointed leadership at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to fire almost all of its 1,700 workers and "wind down" the agency, according to testimony of current and former employees.

In company news, NetApp ( NTAP ) was the worst performer on the S&P 500 with shares down over 15% after the company lowered its fiscal 2025 outlook on Thursday.

AES ( AES ) shares were up over 11% as the company outlined an upbeat full-year earnings outlook following a quarterly beat.

Intel ( INTC ) said it will continue construction of its $28 billion chip factories in Ohio at a "slower pace" and now expects to complete the facilities in 2030 at the earliest. Intel ( INTC ) shares were up 2.8%.

Bank7 ( BSVN ) shares rose 1.5% after the company acquired First American Mortgage, a residential mortgage lending services provider. The price wasn't disclosed.

Gold decreased 1.1% to $2,865.0 per troy ounce, while silver was down 1.3% to $31.70 per troy ounce.