Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened mixed Friday, as investors eyed the release of U.S. economic data later in the day, while discussions over the U.S. “fiscal cliff” appeared to have stalled.
At the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat, the S&P 500 advanced 0.03%, while the Nasdaq gave back 0.10%.
Pressuring shares, U.S. personal spending fell unexpectedly last month, official data showed on Friday.
In a report, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said that personal spending fell to a seasonally adjusted -0.2%, from 0.8% in the preceding month.
Analysts had expected personal spending to rise 0.2% last month.
Other bearish news included, the U.S.’s Chicago PMI rose less-than-expected last month, data showed on Friday.
In a report, research group Kingsbury International said that the Chicago PMI rose to a seasonally adjusted 50.4, from 49.9 in the preceding month.
Analysts had expected the Chicago PMI to rise to 50.5 last month
On Thursday, the Obama administration and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives reached a deadlock over how to prevent the country going over the so-called “fiscal cliff,” USD600 billion worth of sharp federal spending cuts and tax increases, in January 2013.
Sentiment strengthened earlier in the week, as U.S. President Barack Obama said Wednesday he hoped to reach an agreement with Congress before Christmas.
The Internet sector was expected to be active, as Facebook and Zynga revised a years-old partnership between the two companies. Shares in Facebook dropped 0.55% in pre-market trade, while Zynga dove 12.60%.
In the tech sector, Apple's latest iPhone received final clearance from Chinese regulators, paving the way for a December debut in a highly competitive market where the lack of a new model had severely eroded its share of product sales.
Shares in the company edged up 0.07% in early trading, following the news.
Meanwhile, Microsoft fell 0.19% pre-market, amid reports the company plans to overhaul how it develops the flagship Windows operating system in a strategic shift aimed at keeping pace with rivals Apple and Google.
U.S. lender Citigroup was also likely to be in focus, following news the bank's trading and investment-banking division plans to eliminate 150 more jobs while shrinking bonuses by as much as 10%.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 added 0.17%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.23%, Germany's DAX rose 0.34%, while Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.28% higher.