U.S. stocks were mixed Friday as an increased trade deficit in April weighed on markets but a rise in General Motors Corp. shares gave the blue-chip index a slight boost. The Commerce Department reported a 57 billion dollar U.S. trade deficit for April, up 22 per cent from the same month last year. After the report, the S&P 500 Index dropped 2.82 points, or 0.23 percent, to 1,198.11, while the Nasdaq also fell 13.91 points, or 0.67 per cent, to 2,063. Meanwhile, GM shares rose 8.5 per cent, pushing the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average up 9.61 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 10,512.63. Investors bought GM shares came after the United Auto Workers union signalled that it may agree to negotiations with the world's largest car manufacturer on cost cuts. For the week, the Dow gained 0.5 per cent and the S&P 500 rose 0.2 per cent, while the Nasdaq dropped 0.4 per cent, its biggest weekly drop since April. On currency markets, the dollar rose against the euro, closing at 82.49 euro cents from 81.80 euro cents on Thursday. The U.S. currency also gained against the Japanese yen, reaching 108.60 yen from 107.44 on Thursday. Gold was up 5 cents, trading at 422.55 dollars per fine ounce. --SP 0034 Local Time 2134 GMT
