Stock market news today: US stocks tread water on shortened trading day, Bitcoin soars

News Snapshot:

US stocks were mixed on Friday amid a low-volume day of trading following the Thanksgiving holiday. By midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) moved up about 0.2%, or more than 50 points, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dropped roughly 0.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) lagged, falling about 0.2%. Eyes will be on retailers as Black Friday kicks off the holiday shopping season after big box chains such as Target (TGT) and Walmart (WMT) warned that penny-pinching consumers are spending cautiously. Retailers are going earlier and longer on holiday promotions as shoppers turn picky. Read more: 6 ways...