Wall Street opens lower; S&P 500 heads toward weekly gain

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks pulled back at the open on Wall Street Friday, tracking markets in Europe lower as oil remained above $100 a barrel. The S&P 500 is down 0.4% and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite is 0.6% lower. Both indexes are headed for their biggest weekly gains this year. The ongoing war in Ukraine continues to drive sentiment after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for more help for his country after days of bombardment of civilian sites. Rising interest rates and surging COVID-19 cases in China and Europe also weighed on sentiment. Shares in Asia mostly finished higher ahead of President Joe Biden’s planned call with Chinese President Xi Jinping.