U.S. stock indexes fluctuated on Thursday, eventually closing in the plus side after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell wrapped up his two-day economic address to Congress.

Powell told lawmakers that the central bank is determined to tame inflation, assuring them it has the tools to do so, although he acknowledged that recession is one possible outcome. Investors have been concerned about a recession in recent weeks, and a growing number of bank economists are predicting an increasing likelihood of one next year.

But the labor market remains strong, and initial jobless claims fell last week. The Fed is trying to deflate the inflation bubble without heading into a recession, which would involve a lot of job losses.

One of the persistent problems plaguing the Biden administration has been high fuel prices, although gasoline has gotten cheaper at gas stations after topping $5 a gallon in early June. Oil prices fell back to $100 a barrel, and U.S. President Joe Biden called for a suspension of the federal gasoline and diesel tax to lower prices for U.S. consumers.

Next week, the cartel of oil-producing nations and its allies, OPEC+, will meet to discuss production levels after agreeing to increase production in July and August.

Friday will bring more U.S. housing market data in the form of new home sales as signs of slowing growth emerge.

Here are 3 events that could impact the market on Friday

1. CONSUMER SENTIMENT FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

The next US consumer sentiment release will come out at 10:00 am ET (14:00 GMT). Analysts expect the June reading to come in at 50.2, which is in line with the previous reading.

2. NEW HOME SALES

Also at 10:00 AM ET, new home sales data for May will be released. Analysts expect the annualized figure to come in at 588,000, down slightly from the previous month.

3. CARNIVAL EARNINGS

Cruise companies are trying to get back on track, and summer travel is picking up. Carnival (NYSE:CCL) is expected to report a loss per share of $1.18 on revenue of $2.76 billion, though analysts will listen to what the company has to say about ticket bookings and travel going forward.