NEW YORK — U.S. stocks edged back from their record levels on Friday in a quiet finish to another winning week. The Standard & Poor’s 500 slipped 0.3% from the all-time high it set the day before, as it closed its fourth winning week in the last five.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Friday was set for its first record close of the year, riding a wave of recent market optimism and seeing a brief upward push from someone who hardly needs an introduction: Warren Buffett.

U.S. stocks appear set for a cautious opening on Thursday as investors await the release of wholesale inflation data, after the consumer price index pointed to softer-than-expected inflation in July.

PM Eastern Time, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.3%.

Dow futures flat on Thursday as traders await US inflation and jobless claims; Fed rate cut hopes, earnings in focus.

The consumer price index for July will come out on Tuesday, and Wall Street expects a 0.2% monthly overall increase and a 0.3% uptick in the core CPI.

PM Eastern Time, the S&P 500 edged down by 0.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite was mostly unchanged.

Although President Trump's tariff and trade policy is headline news, another factor is of far greater importance to the stock market.

On Wall Street, stocks of companies that could benefit most from lower interest rates helped lead the way. PulteGroup climbed 5.4%, and Lennar rose 5.2% as part of a broad rally for homebuilders and others in the housing industry. Lower rates could make mortgages cheaper to get, which could spur more buying.