Markets, US economic data mixed

Markets were mixed on Friday.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent but the STOXX Europe 600 rose 0.5 percent.

Earlier in Asia, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.8 percent but the Shanghai Composite rose 0.1 percent.

News that the US is considering curbs on portfolio investments into China weighed on markets.

US economic data were mixed.

Consumer spending and income rose 0.1 percent and 0.4 percent respectively but were below expectations.

Durable goods orders rose 0.2 percent, better than expected, but excluding defense orders, they fell 0.6 percent.

“The economic data today was skewed toward the positive side and it helped,” said Paul Zemsky, chief investment officer at Multi Asset Strategies.

“Income growth was solid, but spending was disappointing, that tells me that people and companies are getting defensive and preparing for uncertain times,” said Mike Loewengart, vice president of investment strategy at E-Trade.