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The Nasdaq closed higher on Friday after hitting an intraday high as tech stocks made gains and investors focused on the upcoming earnings week.

At 4:00 ET (20:00 GMT), the NASDAQ Composite gained 0.6% to close at 18,519.36, just below its closing record of 18,647.45. The tech-heavy index reached an intraday record high earlier in the session at 18,690.01. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 260 points or 0.6%, while the S&P 500 index ended flat.

Mega tech earnings due next week

Tech stocks pushed the broader market higher, driven by gains in big tech and chip stocks as investors anticipated key earnings from the tech sector next week. Five of Wall Street’s so-called “Magnificent Seven” are set to report earnings.

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) cut early-day losses despite data showing iPhone sales in China fell in the third quarter due to intense domestic competition.

Chip stocks contributed to the market rise, with NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) closing nearly 1% and 6% higher, respectively, the latter boosted by quarterly earnings that exceeded estimates.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) will report on Tuesday, followed by Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) on Wednesday. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) will report on Thursday. These five companies represent a significant portion of Wall Street’s overall market capitalization, and their earnings are expected to serve as a bellwether for the broader market. Attention will focus on whether AI has been a major earnings driver amid rising capital expenditures in this rapidly growing sector.

In addition to the Magnificent Seven, several other major Wall Street companies are set to report next week, including Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD), Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), Visa (NYSE:V), Ford (NYSE:F), and Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER).

Capri slumps as Tapestry merger hits regulatory roadblock

Capri Holdings (NYSE:CPRI) fell 49% after a U.S. judge blocked a pending merger between the parent company of Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo and handbag maker Tapestry (NYSE:TPR). Shares of Tapestry climbed 15%.

UBS noted, "We assume a 50% probability the FTC’s attempt to block the deal succeeds, and the market will value CPRI based solely on its fundamentals."

Health insurer Centene (NYSE:CNC) jumped 5% after beating estimates for third-quarter profit.

Crypto-related stocks follow Bitcoin lower on Tether probe

Stocks related to cryptocurrency, including Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ:COIN), MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ:MSTR), and Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT), fell sharply alongside Bitcoin after reports indicated that the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office is investigating whether Tether violated money laundering and sanctions laws.

Payrolls loom large

New orders for key U.S.-manufactured capital goods increased more than expected in September, a positive sign ahead of next week's advance estimate of third-quarter GDP.

Next week also brings the influential monthly jobs report, which will attract significant attention, especially following last month's hotter-than-expected release that curtailed expectations of further substantial Fed cuts.

Increased odds of Donald Trump’s presidency over Kamala Harris led to market positioning for inflationary U.S. policies in the coming years.

*(Peter Nurse, Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)