Stocks Struggled in Early Trading

U.S. stocks opened marginally lower on Friday as the three main benchmarks struggled to preserve their weekly gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately was up 0.11 point, to 19,918.99. The S&P 500 added 1.25 points, or 0.06%, to 2,262.21. The Nasdaq Composite gained 7.12 points, or 0.13%, to 5,454.54.

Crude oil prices pulled back on Friday as investors cashed in profits ahead of the holiday break. Brent crude fell 51 cents, or 0.9%, to $54.55 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate futures were trading down 48 cents, or 0.9%, at $52.47 a barrel.

Deutsche Bank AG and Credit Suisse Group AG agreed to pay a combined $12.5 billion to resolve U.S. investigations into sales of the toxic debt that fueled the financial crisis, putting behind them a major dispute that undermined confidence in the banks and raised questions about their turnarounds.

U.S. sales and distribution of antibiotics approved for use in food-producing animals increased 1 percent from 2014 to 2015, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a report on Thursday.