Summer Friday and GDP is slighly worse than expected and the economy grew slower, thats not really a shocker, as we digst earnings.  Lets face it Q3 can be a bore and all we really wait for is the Football Season and hope to avoid a market sell off in October.  On this Friday the best thing to do is head to weekend thinking and avoid closing on the lows for the day.

(AP) — Stocks fell and interest rates rose in the Treasury market Friday after the government said the economy grew at a slower pace than expected during the second quarter. The Commerce Department said the gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the economy, grew at an annual pace of 2.4 percent from April to June. That’s less than the 2.5 percent economists polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast.

The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 106 points in early morning trading.

The report confirmed investors’ belief that the recovery is weakening as unemployment remains high and government stimulus programs end. Consumers cut back on their spending because of job worries and companies spent less to rebuild inventories.

The figure was especially discouraging after the government revised first-quarter growth to a pace of 3.7 percent from 2.7 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average entered the last day of July up 7.1 percent for the month. The market‘s big gains have come on strong corporate earnings and profit forecasts that conflict with economic reports that point to a slowdown.

In the past few days, however, investors have been more focused on economic reports. Disappointing numbers on housing and unemployment and cautious words from the Federal Reserve have sent stocks lower.

In early morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 105.96, or 1 percent, to 10,361.20. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped 11.88, or 1.1 percent, to 1,089.65, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 28.50, or 1.3 percent, to 2,223.19.

The disappointing GDP report sent investors into the safety of the Treasury market, which drove interest rates lower. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 2.93 percent from 2.99 percent late Thursday. Its yield is used to set rates on mortgages and other consumer loans.

European markets fell after reports that Spain’s credit rating is likely to be cut by Moody’s Investors Service. The potential downgrade comes as the country’s unemployment rate jumped to a 13-year high of 20.09 percent and the government continues to grapple with rising debt problems.

Losses also accelerated in Europe after the weak GDP report.

Spain’s IBEX 35 fell 2 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.8 percent, Germany’s DAX index dropped 0.8 percent, and France’s CAC-40 fell 0.8 percent. Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 1.6 percent.

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Overnight Developments

• Global stocks are mixed with the European Euro Stoxx 50 Index up +0.76% at a 1-month high and Sep S&Ps up +4.70 points at a 4-week high. European and US stocks rallied while the dollar index slipped to a 3-week low after a successful Spanish bond sale eased concern that Spain’s government will struggle to finance its widening deficit. Spain sold 3.5 billion euros ($4.3 billion) of 10-year and 30-year bonds at yields lower than the prevailing market rates with a strong bid-to-cover ratio of 2.45, assuaging concern that it would face difficulty meeting bond repayments. The yield premium demanded by investors to hold Spanish debt rather than equivalent German bunds narrowed to 209.5 bp after the sale, as it retreated from a record wide 221 bp yesterday, the highest since the introduction of the euro. Limiting stock gains was the 1% drop in Nokia Oyj, extending yesterday’s 9% sell off, after Goldman Sachs slashed their share price estimates and profit forecasts f or the world’s largest maker of mobile phones which started the slide yesterday after it lowered its revenue and margin forecasts.
• The Asian markets today closed mixed with Japan down -0.67%, Hong Kong +0.38%, China -0.58%, Taiwan +0.83%, Australia -0.70%, Singapore -0.11%, South Korea +0.05%, India +0.88%. James Hardie Industries SE, the biggest seller of home siding in the US, lost 3.8% in Sydney after US building permits unexpectedly fell to a 1-year low and most Japanese exporters closed lower as the yen gained against the dollar, which threatens to cut the value of overseas income when repatriated. On the positive side, Nintendo, the world’s number one maker of portable video-game players, rose 5.2%, adding on to yesterday’s 5.2% gain, after UBS boosted its rating on the stock to "buy" from "neutral" as the company introduced a new handheld video-game player this week.

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