The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 70.87 points, or 0.26 percent, to 26,820.25. The S&P 500 dropped 15.83 points, or 0.53 percent, to 2,961.79. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 91.03 points, or 1.13 percent, to 7,939.63.
Ten of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors traded lower around market close, with the information technology sector down 1.41 percent, leading the losers.
On the economic front, the index of consumer sentiment picked up to 93.2 in September as boosted by more favorable income trends, especially among middle-income households, the University of Michigan said Friday in its widely-watched survey.
Yet U.S. consumers voiced concerns over rising levels of economic uncertainty, caused basically by partisanship, global economy and domestic economic policies, according to Richard Curtin, Surveys of Consumers chief economist of the university.
"Trade policies have had the greatest negative impact on consumers, with a near record one-third of all consumers negatively mentioning trade policies in September," Curtin noted.
Personal income increased 73.5 billion U.S. dollars, or 0.4 percent, in August, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on Friday.
Personal consumption expenditures (PCE), a key metric of household spending, rose 20.1 billion dollars, or 0.1 percent, which involved increases in spending for goods, primarily for recreational goods and vehicles, as well as falls in spending for services, mainly for food services and accommodations.
New orders for manufactured durable goods in August climbed 0.2 percent to 250.7 billion dollars, marking the third consecutive monthly growth, the U.S. Census Bureau said Friday.
Shipments of manufactured durable goods last month also increased 0.1 percent to 254.2 billion dollars, following a 1.2 percent decrease in July.
Latest comments