Dow slips as economic growth disappoints

The stock market closed mostly lower Friday, capping its first losing week of 2012, after the government reported that economic growth was slower at the end of last year than economists expected.

The Dow Jones industrial average spent all Friday in the red. It ended down 74.17 points, or 0.58 percent, at 12,660.46. The loss snapped a three-week winning streak for the Dow, which is still up 3.6 percent for the year.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost early gains and finished down 2.10 points at 1,316.33. The Nasdaq composite, which has more than doubled the Dow's gain for the year, edged up 11.27 to 2,816.55.

Economic growth for October through December came in at an annual rate of 2.8 percent. That was the fastest of 2011 but lower than the 3 percent that economists were looking for.

Utility companies led the way down with a fall of 1.3 percent. Most of the other nine industries in the S&P also fell, but only slightly, continuing a curious trading pattern this year: Trading has been calm in the past four weeks, a big change from the violent moves up and down that marked much of 2011.

Friday was the 17th day in a row of moves of less than 100 points up or down for the Dow.