NEW YORK, Aug 15, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Wall Street stocks were mixed early Friday following a solid US retail sales report as markets await a summit between the American and Russian leaders later in the day.

Overall US retail sales climbed 0.5 percent in July to $726.3 billion from June, in line with analyst expectations. The report comes as surveys point to a partial recovery in consumer sentiment compared with the spring when tariff worries were more acute.

Meanwhile, oil prices dipped early Friday following Thursday's rise as markets await the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the Ukraine war.

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.4 percent at 45,109.01.

The broad-based S&P 500 slipped 0.1 percent to 6,463.26, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.3 percent to 21,638.22.

Among individual companies, UnitedHealth Group surged more than 12 percent after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed an equity stake in the insurer, which has been beset with government investigations into its billing practices.

Applied Materials slumped 12.6 percent as the semiconductor company warned of lower revenues in the current quarter while it navigates "near-term uncertainties" in economic conditions.