US stocks are mixed as banks gain, technology drops

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks gave a mixed performance in midday trading on Friday as health care, banks and industrial companies gained ground and offset a decline in technology stocks.

Still, stocks are on track for their third straight weekly gain, having been bolstered in prior sessions by an easing of tensions in the U.S.-China trade war.

Bond yields rose sharply after the government reported that Americans kept spending money in August, particularly on cars. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.87% from 1.79% late Thursday.

That helped lift bank stocks, which rely on higher yields to set interest rates and make more money from loans. JPMorgan rose 1.7% and Citigroup rose 1.8%.

Health care stocks made some of the strongest gains. UnitedHealth Group rose 1.7% and Humana rose 2.6%.

Technology stocks reversed course from the past few days and broadly fell. Apple and Broadcom were the heaviest weights holding the sector down. Apple is among several big technology companies being asked for documents as part of a Congressional antitrust investigation.

Chipmakers fell broadly after Broadcom warned that demand remains weak and couldn't project when it will pick up again.

Optimism has been building on Wall Street all week as the U.S. and China make conciliatory gestures on trade a month ahead of planned negotiations. The week marks a stark contrast to the entire month of August, when both nations made increasingly damaging retaliatory moves to escalate the dispute that has threatened to slow global economic growth and potentially prompt a recession.

Investors are also closely watching the latest economic data. The Commerce Department's retail sales report beat economists' forecasts, but showed that consumers are becoming more cautious. The increase came from auto...