Small declines prevail on Wall Street

The Dow Jones Industrial closed up 0.08 percent and reached 42,206.82 points. The S&P 500 closed down 0.22 percent and closed at 5,967.84 points. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.51 percent to 19,447.41 points.

The Russell 2000 mid-cap index fell 0.15 percent to 2,109.88.

This week, the S&P 500 fell 0.3 percent, while the Dow Jones fell 0.1 percent. The Nasdaq rose 0.1 percent.

Stocks fell on Friday as investors weighed future interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and monitored the latest developments in the Middle East.

Blue-chip stocks came under pressure after a Wall Street Journal report that the U.S. could revoke waivers for some semiconductor makers. Nvidia fell more than 1%, while Broadcom and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company fell about 1% and more than 2%, respectively.

The S&P 500 started the session with slight gains after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said the central bank could cut interest rates as early as July.

“I think we’re in a position where we can do it and we can do it as early as July,” Waller said during an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

“That would be my opinion, regardless of whether the commission agreed to it or not,” he added.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday the central bank is in no rush to cut benchmark rates and will remain data-dependent, especially since it is unclear how President Donald Trump's tariffs will affect the economy.

Trump again lambasted Powell on Thursday, saying the Fed chairman was costing the U.S. “hundreds of billions of dollars” by delaying interest-rate cuts. The president said before the Fed’s decision on Wednesday that “stupid” Powell likely wouldn’t cut rates.

Tensions over the Israel-Iran conflict also remained high, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly ordering the Jerusalem military to attack strategic targets in Iran as well as government targets.

Trump is considering direct U.S. involvement in an attack on Tehran, with the White House saying on Thursday he would make a final decision within the next two weeks. Trump has previously called for Tehran to surrender completely, something Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called “dangerous and ridiculous.”

“With so much uncertainty in the world, who really wants to go long on the weekend,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research.

He also noted that the S&P 500 is still trading just about 3% below its recent 52-week high, saying that "previous highs act like rusty doors and take several tries before they finally open."

“If there is a calming down of geopolitical activity, you know that could be helpful,” Stovall said.

"There are several key questions that need to be answered before we know how capital markets will cope with this geopolitical shock, including how badly and for how long Iran's energy infrastructure will remain damaged, whether Iran's nuclear capabilities will be completely destroyed, and whether the current regime will remain in power," Jeff Buchbinder, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial, said.

The Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing activity index in June remained at May's level, or -4 points. Analysts had expected an index of -1.7 points.

NYMEX WTI crude for July delivery fell 0.19 percent to $75.00 a barrel. ICE Brent crude fell 2.0 percent to $77.27 a barrel.