Investing.com - U.S. stocks finished mixed on Friday on fears lawmakers are making no progress in talks to steer the U.S. economy away from a fast-approaching fiscal cliff.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.03%, the S&P 500 index was up 0.02%, while the Nasdaq Composite index fell 0.06%.
Investors avoided stocks on Friday after House Speak John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, lamented that talks on fiscal reforms with Democrats in the Senate and White House were going "almost nowhere."
The fiscal cliff, a combination of rising taxes and cuts to government spending converging at the close of this year, could tip the U.S. into a recession next year if Congress fails to steer the economy away from it.
Soft data watered down stock prices as well.
The Chicago purchasing managers' index hit 50.4 in November, up from 49.9 in the previous month but short of market calls for a gain to 50.5.
Still, a reading over 50 signifies an expanding economy.
Separately, government data revealed that U.S. personal spending decreased unexpectedly in October, ticking down 0.2% after a 0.8% rise the previous month.
Analysts had expected personal spending to rise 0.2% in October.
U.S. personal income was flat last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.2% gain following a 0.4% increase in September.
The session wasn't totally void of optimism.
Earlier in Europe, Germany's parliament approved an E.U.-I.M.F. accord for Greece to cut its debt to 124% of gross domestic product by 2020, which clears a hurdle and frees up EUR44 billion to flow into the country's coffers in installments to avoid default for now.
Elsewhere, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said earlier that the eurozone economy should begin recovering in the second half of 2013.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Wal-Mart Stores, up 1.65%, Home Depot, up 1.34%, and Johnson & Johnson, up 0.77%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Microsoft, down 1.26%, Caterpillar, down 1.15%, and Merck, down 0.94%.
European indices, meanwhile, finished mixed to lower
After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.25%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.33%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished up 0.06%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 0.06%.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.03%, the S&P 500 index was up 0.02%, while the Nasdaq Composite index fell 0.06%.
Investors avoided stocks on Friday after House Speak John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, lamented that talks on fiscal reforms with Democrats in the Senate and White House were going "almost nowhere."
The fiscal cliff, a combination of rising taxes and cuts to government spending converging at the close of this year, could tip the U.S. into a recession next year if Congress fails to steer the economy away from it.
Soft data watered down stock prices as well.
The Chicago purchasing managers' index hit 50.4 in November, up from 49.9 in the previous month but short of market calls for a gain to 50.5.
Still, a reading over 50 signifies an expanding economy.
Separately, government data revealed that U.S. personal spending decreased unexpectedly in October, ticking down 0.2% after a 0.8% rise the previous month.
Analysts had expected personal spending to rise 0.2% in October.
U.S. personal income was flat last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.2% gain following a 0.4% increase in September.
The session wasn't totally void of optimism.
Earlier in Europe, Germany's parliament approved an E.U.-I.M.F. accord for Greece to cut its debt to 124% of gross domestic product by 2020, which clears a hurdle and frees up EUR44 billion to flow into the country's coffers in installments to avoid default for now.
Elsewhere, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said earlier that the eurozone economy should begin recovering in the second half of 2013.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Wal-Mart Stores, up 1.65%, Home Depot, up 1.34%, and Johnson & Johnson, up 0.77%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included Microsoft, down 1.26%, Caterpillar, down 1.15%, and Merck, down 0.94%.
European indices, meanwhile, finished mixed to lower
After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.25%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.33%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished up 0.06%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 0.06%.