Weak Earnings Drag Market Lower: Dow Down 205 for Worst Day in 4 Months

By: AP Email

Updated: Fri 2:30 PM, Oct 19, 2012

NEW YORK (AP) - Poor corporate earnings reports are pounding the stock market in a sour end to an otherwise strong week.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 200 points for its worst day in four months.

Disappointing results from three giants of the Dow - Microsoft, General Electric and McDonald's - were to blame. The broader market fell, too.

The Dow sank 205 points, or 1.5 percent, to close at 13,344 Friday. The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 24, or 1.7 percent, to 1,433.

The Nasdaq composite index, hammered by a second ugly day for Google, lost 67 points to 3,006, a 2.2 percent decline.

The declines were broad. Four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was relatively heavy at 3.8 billion shares.

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