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Hewlett Packard ( HPE ) slumps after dour second-quarter forecasts

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Nonfarm payrolls increase by 151,000 in February

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Indexes up: Dow +0.46%, S&P 500 +0.43%, Nasdaq +0.54%

(Updates to 2:55 PM ET)

By Chibuike Oguh, Johann M Cherian and Sukriti Gupta

NEW YORK, March 7 (Reuters) -

U.S. stocks edged higher on Friday, rebounding from early

declines after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the

economy was "in a good place."

But stocks were headed for a weekly loss as Powell said

the central bank will not be quick to cut interest rates and

echoed investor concerns about President Donald Trump's

policies.

Markets have been roiled this week by uncertainty about

Trump's trade policy, particularly tariff decisions on imported

goods from Canada, Mexico and China.

Powell said the Fed will take a cautious approach to

monetary policy easing, adding that the economy currently

"continues to be in a good place".

"Powell is echoing what the rest of us feel: unease that

while the adjustments made by the administration may well work

and put the country on better financial footing, the speed and

whipsaw-like nature of the change makes it difficult to predict

and to plan around," said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris

Financial Group in Richmond, Virginia. "So, the best action when

that occurs is to sit and wait."

Stocks fell in choppy early trade, but rebounded after

Powell's comments. Among the benchmark S&P 500 11 main sectors,

utilities, energy, technology and

industrials were advancing. Consumer discretionary

, financials and consumer staples

were dropping.

The three main indexes were set to end the week lower, with

the Nasdaq on track to finish nearly 4% down, which would be its

biggest weekly drop since September. In the previous session,

the Nasdaq confirmed a 10% drop from its December all-time high.

At 2:55 p.m., the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose

197.08 points, or 0.46%, to 42,776.16, the S&P 500 gained

24.86 points, or 0.43%, to 5,763.38 and the Nasdaq Composite

gained 99.41 points, or 0.54%, to 18,167.37.

Data early on Friday showed U.S. job growth picked up in

February from the previous month. However, thousands of recent

firings of federal workers were not reflected in the data.

Unemployment ticked up to 4.1%, adding to worries about

the economy's resilience. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs ( GS ) have

lowered their growth forecasts for the economy.

"This is a growth scare," said Adam Hetts, portfolio manager

at Janus Henderson Investors. "This is what it feels like to go

from a no-landing to a soft-landing environment and it's

unpleasant. It involves a spate of unpleasant economic data, and

the primary driver being weaker consumer spending."

On Thursday, Trump offered a four-week reprieve on tariffs

he imposed on imports from Canada and Mexico that fall under a

free-trade pact. The U.S. remains in a trade war with China.

Reciprocal trade barriers and other duties are expected

to take effect in the following weeks.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise ( HPE ) slumped 13% after saying

its annual profit forecast would be hit by U.S. tariffs.

Costco fell 7% after the retailer missed Street

estimates on quarterly earnings as merchandise costs increased.

Broadcom ( AVGO ) gained 7.6% after the chipmaker assuaged

investor worries about artificial intelligence infrastructure

demand with a strong second-quarter forecast.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.32-to-1

ratio on the NYSE. There were 75 new highs and 121 new lows on

the NYSE.

The S&P 500 posted 8 new 52-week highs and 13 new lows

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 21 new highs and 148 new

lows.