The Dow Jones Industrials changed course and lost 90.24 points to pause for lunch Friday at 41,244.81.
The S&P 500 inched up 7.4 points to 5,599.36.
The NASDAQ gathered 51.47 points to 17,567.90.
As August’s trading winds down, the S&P 500 is on pace for a nearly 1.7% gain during the month, while the Dow is on track to add 1.3%. The NASDAQ Composite has lagged and was last unchanged on the month. The S&P 500 was on pace for its fourth straight winning month.
The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, rose 0.2% on a monthly basis and 2.5% from a year ago, coming in line with estimates from economists polled by Dow Jones. Excluding food and energy, it also rose 0.2%.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained slightly, lowering yields to 3.87% from Thursday’s 3.88%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices skidded two dollars to $73.91 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices settled $23.00 to $2,537.30