North American markets appear set to open lower Friday with premarket trading in major Wall Street indexes down after a measure of consumer inflation rose.

In today’s economic news, the Canadian economy edged up 0.2% in January, a pace slightly slower than that of the previous three months, Statistics Canada said. Strength in service industries more than offset a decrease in the production of goods.

The Canadian dollar opened at US86.05¢ Friday, down 0.11 of a cent.

South of the border, U.S. consumer spending rose 0.1% in February while personal incomes rose 0.3% and the rate of savings was negative 0.5%, the Commerce Department said today.

Meanwhile, a price index for personal consumption expenditures excluding food and energy rose 0.1% in February after increasing 0.2% in January. Compared to a year earlier, the core increased by 1.8% a second consecutive month during February.

After the start of trading, a final reading of March consumer sentiment and a Chicago-area manufacturing survey and February factory orders data will be unveiled.

In today’s M&A news, German software giant SAP said it wouldn’t comment on trader speculation that International Business Machines was weighing making a bid. SAP shares earlier hit a 52-week high in Frankfurt and could continue to rally.

Overseas, European stock markets were weaker. Pulling back from Thursday’s highs, Germany’s DAX 30 declined 0.1%, as did the French CAC 40. In London, the FTSE 100 eased only slightly.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo held above the 17,000 level for the second straight session — its first foray above that mark in five-and-a-half years.

Toronto stocks edged higher on Thursday, getting a boost from higher prices for gold and oil.

The two commodities helped lift the S&P/TSX composite index by 16.37 points, or 0.13%, to a new record high close of 12,206.95.

U.S. blue-chip stocks ended lower, after economic data sparked new inflation concerns.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 65 points, or 0.58%, at 11,150.70. The S&P 500 was down just 2.64 points, or 0.20%, at 1,300.25. The Nasdaq composite index was up 3.04 points, or 0.13%, at 2,340.82.