The stock market drifted lower Friday but finished October with its biggest monthly gain in four years.
U.S. government data released during the month showed feeble economic growth, wage growth, and consumer spending growth. But the outlook for future growth brightened and fears waned that a slowing Chinese economy would send the U.S. economy into a tailspin.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 92 points Friday, or 0.5 percent, to close at 17,663.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 10 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 2,079. For the month the index rose 8.3 percent, its biggest monthly increase since 2011.
The Nasdaq composite fell 21 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 5,053.
Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.15 percent.