New York ? Investors closed out a stellar July by collecting profits Friday, sending stocks lower despite a respectable reading in the nation’s gross domestic product. The major indexes finished the week mixed, ending four consecutive weeks of gains, but had big advances for the month.

The Commerce Department’s latest reading on GDP showed the economy growing at an annualized rate of 3.4 percent. While economists had expected GDP growth to come in at 3.5 percent, it was considered a strong showing considering the high energy costs that continue to plague the economy.

“This is good growth, and it’s not the type of growth that’s going to scare people from an inflation standpoint,” said Mark Bronzo, managing director at Gartmore Separate Accounts. “However, from this number, I would think the Federal Reserve will continue to raise interest rates, at least for the next few meetings.”

The Fed next meets Aug. 9, and is widely expected to raise the nation’s benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 3.5 percent. The prospect of further rate hikes also may have been a factor in profit-taking by investors fearing a further slowdown in the economy.

Chevron Corp.'s second-quarter profit topped analyst expectations, but it wasn't enough to impress investors as the second largest U.S. oil firm jousts with a Chinese rival in a battle to buy Unocal Corp.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 64.64, or 0.60 percent, to 10,640.91.

Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was down 9.54, or 0.77 percent, at 1,234.18, and the Nasdaq composite lost 13.61, or 0.62 percent, to 2,184.83.

A string of bullish economic data and strong corporate earnings combined to make July a strong month on Wall Street. The Dow gained 3.56 percent, while the S&P rose 3.6 percent and the Nasdaq surged 6.22 percent. The Nasdaq, which enjoyed positive earnings reports from the technology sector, saw its best month since December 2003.

But while profits remained strong this week and the economic data generally was sound, the rally that kept stocks climbing for all of July appeared to be running out of momentum, and investors opted to start cashing in. For the week, the Dow fell 0.1 percent, while the S&P edged 0.04 percent higher and the Nasdaq gained 0.23 percent.

In earnings news, natural gas and oil company Unocal Corp. slipped 35 cents to $64.85 despite reporting strong earnings that beat Wall Street’s forecasts by 14 cents per share. The company, which focuses on exploration, is the subject of a bidding war between Chevron Corp. and CNOOC Ltd., China’s state-owned energy company.

Unocal stock may have lost momentum after two newspapers reported CNOOC could drop its bid for the company. According to the Financial Times and Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post, CNOOC is considering whether to raise its bid for Unocal or drop it entirely due to the intense outcry from politicians worried about Chinese ownership of an American energy company. CNOOC’s U.S. depositary receipts rose $4.61 to $69.81.

Chevron lost 93 cents to $58.01 even after its quarterly earnings beat expectations. While profits fell 11 percent, Chevron’s profits were 7 cents per share better than analysts’ estimates. The strong showing could make Chevron’s bid for Unocal more attractive.