U.S. stocks opened lower Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 retreating from their record levels on the previous day, following a mixed U.S. non-farm payroll report.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in July and the unemployment rate edged down to 7.4 percent, the Labor Department said Friday morning.

The report painted a mixed picture of the labor market as July' s payroll growth slowed while unemployment rate fell. Analysts polled by Reuters expected non-farm payroll employment to add 184,000 in July. Moreover, the department revised down June' s payroll numbers to 188,000 from 195,000.

However, July' s jobless rate fell more than expected. Analysts had forecast unemployment rate to fall to 7.5 percent in July from 7.6 percent in June.

Other data showed U.S. consumer spending outpaced income growth in June, according to the Commerce Department. Personal income increased 45.4 billion U.S. dollars, or 0.3 percent in June, while personal consumption expenditures increased 59.4 billion dollars, or 0.5 percent.

Later in the day, the Commerce Department will release factory orders data for June. New orders for U.S. manufactured goods rose 2.1 percent in May, marking the second straight monthly gain.

U.S. stocks soared on Thursday, lifting the S&P 500 to close above the landmark level of 1,700 points for the first time in history, the Dow at a new all-time high and the Nasdaq at a nearly 13-year high, fueled by a batch of upbeat economic data and the Federal Reserve' s reassurance to keep its monetary stimulus in place.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 61.04 points, or 0.39 percent, to 15,566.98 points. The S&P 500 lost 4.79 points, or 0.28 percent, to 1,702.08 points. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 7.18 points, or 0.20 percent, to 3,668.56 points. Endi

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