Stocks ended narrowly mixed Friday after seesawing between gains and losses after a big batch of economic data and amid confusion over tariffs. The Dow Jones industrial average firmed 0.1 percent while the S&P 500 was flat and the Nasdaq eased by 0.3 percent. Long-dated US Treasury yields and oil prices declined while the dollar was mixed versus major currencies.

Stocks dropped after President Trump's charge that China has violated its tentative trade agreement in which the two sides agreed to scale back tariffs and work on a larger trade deal. The comment raised concern that the trade détente is set to collapse and that another round of trade trouble is starting. Stock recovered later on Trump's subsequent remark that he expects to work something out with Chinese President Xi. The latest set of comments comes the market faces confusion and uncertainty over the outlook for legal challenges to Trump's tariffs.

In economic data, attention focused on better inflation readings in the personal income and spending report and lower inflation expectations in the consumer sentiment survey, which both tended to bolster expectations for rate cuts. Chicago PMI figures missed to the downside. Personal income came in much stronger than expected. Analysts noted the impact of tariffs does not yet appear to be showing up in the data.

Among sectors, best performers included consumer staples, utilities, materials, industrials and financials. Lagging were energy, consumer discretionary and technology.

Market Reflections track market reaction to the trading day's major events. Economic data, policymaker speeches, and company news are featured in this report as well as key indexes and financial instruments.

Understanding why markets respond as they do is fundamental for an investor. Market Reflections help explain how the day's events, news, and data impact the outlook for the economy and for market prices.