QQQ and SPY recover opening losses as mixed growth data, Iran reports and AI funding reshape the day

QQQ finished 0.11% above the prior close and SPY gained 0.33%, after opening 0.55% and 0.62% lower. Fourth-quarter nonfarm productivity rose 1.8%, below the 2.8% estimate. March composite PMI then slipped to 51.4 as business activity growth reached an 11-month low, manufacturing strengthened, services slowed and price pressure returned. Middle East reports pulled in opposite directions, from a planned deployment of 3,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to a reported mechanism for a one-month ceasefire. OpenAI's plan to raise roughly $10 billion added a separate AI-financing theme. SPY outperformed QQQ by 0.22 percentage points at the close.