Major US stock indices closed near the zero mark after six consecutive days of growth, as investors took a breather before the three-day weekend.

A strong batch of revenue reports from retailers led to the S & P 500 and Nasdaq Composite reaching a record closing level on Thursday, placing all three major indexes on the trajectory to record their strongest weekly profits since late April.

In addition, as it became known, the real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annualized rate of 1.2% in the first quarter of 2017, according to the "second" estimate published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter, real GDP increased by 2.1%. The GDP estimate published today is based on more complete source data than was available for a preliminary assessment published last month. In a preliminary estimate, real GDP growth was 0.7%. Given this second assessment for the first quarter, the overall picture of economic growth remains the same.

In addition, new orders for major capital goods produced in the US in April did not change unexpectedly, and supplies decreased, indicating a cooling of production activity, which could further temper expectations of a sharp rebound in economic growth in the second quarter. The Ministry of Commerce reported that orders for capital goods not related to defense orders, with the exception of aircraft that are closely monitored as planned business expenses, have not changed for the second consecutive month. Earlier it was reported that these so-called basic orders in March increased by 0.5%.

At the same time, the final results of Thomson-Reuters and the Michigan Institute showed that in May US consumers felt slightly more optimistic about the economy than last month. According to the data, in May the consumer sentiment index rose to 97.1 points compared with the final reading for April 97 points and the preliminary value for May 97.7 points. It was predicted that the index will be 97.5 points.

Most components of the DOW index closed in the red (16 of 30). More shares fell The Home Depot, Inc. (HD, -0.97%). The leader of growth was the shares of The Walt Disney Company (DIS, + 1.04%).

The sectors of the S & P index showed mixed dynamics. The health sector fell most (-0.3%). The growth leader was the conglomerate sector (+ 0.7%).

At closing:

Dow -0.01% 21,080.28 -2.67

Nasdaq + 0.08% 6,210.19 +4.93

S & P + 0.03% 2.415.82 + 0.75

U.S. stock-index futures were flat as investors assessed morning's batch of economic data and prepared for a prolonged weekend.

Stocks:

Nikkei 19,686.84 -126.29 -0.64%

Hang Seng 25,639.27 +8.49 +0.03%

Shanghai 3,110.16 +2.33 +0.08%

S&P/ASX 5,751.66 -37.96 -0.66%

FTSE 7,533.65 +15.94 +0.21%

CAC 5,311.74 -25.42 -0.48%

DAX 12,577.70 -44.02 -0.35%

Crude $48.60 (-0.61%)

Gold $1,266.00 (+0.76%)

(company / ticker / price / change ($/%) / volume)

Chevron (CVX) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Exane BNP Paribas

European stocks notched a slight loss Thursday, hampered by lower volume and a slide in oil prices following news the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will hold back from making deeper production cuts.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed at fresh records on Thursday, as U.S. stocks advanced for a sixth straight session, thanks in part to big gains in shares of Best Buy after quarterly results.

Asian stocks dropped, turning away from Wall Street's strong performance overnight. Crude prices remained subdued early on Friday after an agreement by OPEC to extend existing supply curbs disappointed many who had hoped for larger cuts.

(index / closing price / change items /% change)

Nikkei +70.15 19813.13 +0.36%

TOPIX +3.31 1578.42 +0.21%

Hang Seng +202.28 25630.78 +0.80%

CSI 300 +61.49 3485.66 +1.80%

Euro Stoxx 50 -2.07 3584.55 -0.06%

FTSE 100 +2.81 7517.71 +0.04%

DAX -21.15 12621.72 -0.17%

CAC 40 -4.18 5337.16 -0.08%

DJIA +70.53 21082.95 +0.34%

S&P 500 +10.68 2415.07 +0.44%

NASDAQ +42.23 6205.26 +0.69%

S&P/TSX -8.76 15410.73 -0.06%