US markets declined again on Friday as the traders, wary of the risks posed by Europe's debt crisis, remained cautious ahead of the long holiday weekend. This time, it was more trouble at a major Spanish bank. Standard & Poor's cut the bank's credit rating to junk status because of deepening uncertainty over its restructuring plans. Spain's deteriorating finances and a possible Greek exit from the euro weighed on investor sentiment, overshadowing an upbeat report on US consumer confidence.
US consumer sentiment rose to its highest level in more than four years in May as Americans stayed optimistic about the job market, while higher income households expected to see bigger wage increases. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment rose to 79.3 from 76.4 in April, topping forecasts for 77.8 and an initial May reading of the same.
The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 74.92 points or 0.60 percent at 12,454.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell by 2.86 points or 0.22 percent to 1,317.82, while the Nasdaq composite fell 1.85 points or 0.07 percent to 2,837.53.
Indian ADRs made a mixed closing on Friday, HDFC Bank was down by 0.17%, ICICI Bank was down by 0.05% and Infosys was down by 0.72%.
On the other hand Wipro was up by 0.05% and Tata Motors was up by 0.02%.