12:35 PM EDT, 08/09/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes edged lower with government bond yields in choppy midday trading on Friday.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3% to 16,612.7, with the S&P 500 down 0.1% to 5,314.6 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.1% lower at 39,393.5. Communications services and industrials were among the steepest decliners intraday. Health care and real estate led the gainers.

The CBOE's Volatility Index (VIX), known as the fear gauge, slumped 7.1% to 20.09.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil climbed 0.6% to $76.68 a barrel.

The oil price gains come as geopolitical tensions remain taut while Israel awaits Iran's response to last week's assassination of a senior official in the Hamas militant group in Tehran. Iran's senior leader vowed to retaliate against Israel for the deadly airstrike, threatening a wider Middle Eastern war that could imperil Persian Gulf oil supplies. "As the sentiment-driven crude sell-off eases, traders have turned their attention back to supply risks, not least the Middle East," Saxo Bank said in a note.

Most Treasury yields fell, with the 10-year down 5.3 basis points to 3.94% and the two-year rate less than one basis point lower at 4.04%.

In company news, Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ) reported a jump in Q2 non-GAAP earnings and sales, beating market expectations, and also raised its EPS guidance for 2024. Shares advanced 10.8% intraday, the top performer on the S&P 500.

Intel's ( INTC ) senior unsecured rating was downgraded by Moody's to BAA1 from A3 rating over apprehensions about the chipmaker's profitability, Reuters reported Thursday, citing the credit ratings firm. Shares of Intel ( INTC ) dropped 4.8% intraday, among the worst performers on the S&P 500, the Dow, and the Nasdaq.