US stocks edge higher on the back of strong GDP print, set for weekly gains

Major US equity indices edged higher during the opening hour of trade on Friday as investors cheered stellar US GDP growth figures.

According to the advance report, the US economy is estimated to have expanded at 4.1% annualized pace in the second quarter of 2018, marking its fastest pace of growth in almost four years. 

This coupled with Amazon's robust earnings report, posting its biggest quarterly profit in history, remained supportive of the positive mood during the opening hour of trade. 

The positive factors, to some extent, were offset by below estimate results from a pair of energy heavyweight stocks - Exxon Mobil and Chevron, which seemed to keep a lid on any strong follow-through. 

Nevertheless, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the broader S&P 500 Index were looking at gains of anywhere between nearly 2% to 1.5% for the week, while tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index lagged behind with weekly rise of around 0.5%.