U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday as weaker economic data reinforced concerns that the economy is cooling. The S&P 500 eased 0.2% from its record high, the Dow shed 108 points and the Nasdaq 100 fell 0.1%. The University of Michigan’s preliminary August sentiment index dropped to 51, below forecasts of 55, while retail sales recorded their biggest monthly decline in more than a year in July. Together with weak jobs figures and soft inflation, the data pointed to softer consumer demand that could pressure corporate profits and equity valuations. Among large-cap technology names, Meta fell 0.9%, Oracle lost 3.8% and Amazon slipped 0.9%. Chip stocks were mixed, with Broadcom down 5.9%, Intel off 2% and Nvidia edging lower, while AMD rose 6.5%. Memory-related names extended earlier gains, with Micron up 2.3% after bullish analyst and broker recommendations and Sandisk climbing 7.4% after a 14% surge on Thursday.