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All three major indexes gain for the day

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Expedia ( EXPE ) rises after Q2 profit beat

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Indexes: Dow up 0.1%, S&P 500 up 0.5%, Nasdaq up 0.5%

(Updates to 5:20 p.m. ET)

By Caroline Valetkevitch

NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended higher on

Friday and was little changed for the week after regaining

almost all of its losses since Monday's steep dive that was

prompted by fears of a recession and unwinding of a global

yen-funded carry trade.

The technology sector gave the index its

biggest boost on Friday, and the Cboe Volatility Index,

Wall Street's "fear gauge," fell after surging at the start of

the week.

Monday's big decline followed a sharp sell-off last week

as a weaker-than-expected July jobs report sparked recession

fears, and investors unwound currency carry trade positions

involving the Japanese yen.

"Investors are trying to find evidence of a bottom," said

Robert Phipps, a director at Per Stirling Capital Management in

Austin, Texas.

On Thursday, Federal Reserve policymakers expressed

confidence that inflation was cooling enough to allow rate cuts

ahead, and said they will take their cues on the size and timing

of those cuts from the economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 51.05

points, or 0.13%, to 39,497.54, the S&P 500 gained 24.85

points, or 0.47%, to 5,344.16 and the Nasdaq Composite

added 85.28 points, or 0.51%, to 16,745.30.

For the week, the S&P 500 was down 0.05%, the Dow was down

0.6% and the Nasdaq was down 0.2%.

"There is going to continue to be a significant amount of

uncertainty and anxiety hanging over the market for the course

of the next month until we get to the next Fed meeting," said

Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush

Securities in Los Angeles.

The Fed is expected to cut rates at its next policy meeting

on Sept. 17-18, but traders are weighing whether a 25 or 50

basis point reduction is more likely. Traders are currently

pricing in a 51% probability of a 50 basis point cut, and 49%

odds of a 25 basis point reduction, according to the CME Group's

FedWatch Tool.

Investors also await next week's readings on U.S. consumer

prices and retail sales for July, which could provide fresh

evidence on the chances of a soft landing for the American

economy.

Even after recent selling, all three major indexes remain

solidly higher for the year, with big gains early in 2024 driven

by strong earnings in tech-related megacaps and optimism over

artificial intelligence.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are now each up about 12% since

Dec. 31, and

the selloff has made tech stocks less expensive

based on price-to-earnings ratios.

Among individual gainers Friday, videogame publisher

Take-Two Interactive Software ( TTWO ) climbed 4.4% as it

expects net bookings to grow in fiscal years 2026 and 2027.

Expedia ( EXPE ) also advanced 10.2% after the online travel

agency beat analysts' expectations for second-quarter profit.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 11.13 billion shares, compared

with the 12.59 billion average for the full session over the

last 20 trading days.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a

1.39-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.14-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows; the

Nasdaq Composite recorded 52 new highs and 159 new lows.

(Additional reporting by Shubham Batra and Shashwat Chauhan in

Bengaluru; Editing by David Gregorio)