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Wall Street was mixed to end the week, with a pessimistic read on GDP figures, countered by a less restrictive Wall Street reform bill than expected. Banks and some defensive stocks were stronger, while consumer focused stocks weighed.

Out of Washington, the government reported GDP grew at a 2.7% annualised rate in the first quarter, revised down from a previously reported 3%.

Meanwhile, the University of Michigan's final consumer sentiment index for June rose to 76 points, up from an expected 73.6.

The Dow Jones dropped 8.99, or 0.09% to 10,143.81, the S&P 500 gained 3.07 points, or 0.29% to 1,076.76 and the NASDAQ rose 6.06 points or 0.27% to 2,223.48.

Among the banks, Citigroup rallied 4.2%, while Goldman Sachs jumped 3.5%.

JPMorgan and Wells Fargo put on 3.7% and 2.7% respectively.

Blackberry maker, Research In Motion tumbled 10.8% after reporting an increase in revenue, however the figure was still below expectations.

Apple, the maker of the rival iPhone, lost 0.9%. Microsoft shed 1.9%.

Meanwhile, Coca-Cola retreated 3%. Pepsi was 2.6% lower.

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer rallied 1.2%, while Merck put on 0.9%.

NYMEX light crude oil for August delivery rose US$2.11 to US$78.62 a barrel.

Exxon Mobil retreated 1.6%, while Chevron and ConocoPhillips both gave up 1.1%.

BP ADR’s tumbled another 6% as the company struggles to control the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

COMEX gold for August delivery gained US$10.60 to US$1,256.70 an ounce.

European Markets

Miners and oil plays led a retreat across European stocks Friday.

The UK benchmark FTSE 100 retreated 53.76, or 1.05% to 5,046.47. The French CAC40 lost 35.63, or 1.00% to 3,519.73, while the German DAX was down 44.88, or 0.73% to 6,070.60.

In the UK, Barclays lost 2%, while RBS retreated 1.6%. The more volatile Lloyds gave up 3.7%.

On the continent, BNP Paribas was off 1.1% and Deutsche Bank gave up 1.3%.

Among the major miners, BHP and Rio Tinto gave up 2.8%. This came despite most metals making modest gains on the London Metal Exchange.

BP fell 6.4%, hitting fresh 14-year lows. Royal Dutch Shell was down 1.3%, while BG Group was 1.2% lower.

Japanese Markets

Japan’s Nikkei slumped to a two-week low on Friday. Losses were broad based.

The Nikkei 225 fell 190.86, or 1.92% to 9,737.48.

Mizuho Financial dropped 1.3% to a seven-month low on reports the bank will decide on Friday to sell up to 6 billion new shares as it looks to raise capital through a global offering.

Sumitomo Mitsui and Mitsubishi UFJ slid 0.7% and 0.5%.

Canon slumped 4.5% on the back of a broker downgrade from Credit Suisse.

Sony and Panasonic lost 2% and 2.1%.

Tokyo Electron weakened %, also after Credit Suisse downgraded its rating on the stock.

Automakers Nissan, Mazda and Toyota shed between 1.9% and 2.3%.

Hong Kong Markets

The Hang Seng retreated off recent strong gains. Global optimism was dampened with several lower reads on US consumer data.

The Hang Seng was down 42.70, or 0.21% to 20,690.79.

Heavyweight lender ICBC retreated 0.5%, while Bank of China gave up 0.3%.

HSBC edged 0.1% above the line.

Cosco Pacific, one of the largest shippers in the world, slumped 3.4%.

Esprit Holdings, which gets most of its sales from Europe, was 2.3% weaker. Li & Fung put on 0.1%.

Zijin Mining Group, China’s number one gold miner, lost 1.2% after cancelling its proposed buyout of Aussie miner Indophil after a Philippine province banned open-pit mining. 

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Market Watch by egoli