Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

China, tech news thumps stocks

- MARLEY JAY

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks fell Friday as a combinatio­n of weak economic data from China and disappoint­ing earnings hurt technology and Internet companies. Crude oil prices fell for the 10th day in a row.

Auto sales in China fell in October for the fourth month in a row and are down 13 percent from a year ago, the latest sign its economy is under pressure. Concerns about China’s economy and its trade dispute with the U.S. contribute­d to the global stock market skid in October. The stocks that fared the worst during that time included tech and Internet companies and retailers, which all took sharp losses Friday.

The S&P 500 index dropped 25.82 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,781.01. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 201.92 points, or 0.8 percent, to 25,989.30.

The Nasdaq composite sank 123.98 points, or 1.6 percent, to 7,406.90. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies gave up 28.72 points, or 1.8 percent, to 1,549.49.

“China has played such a critical role in driving global growth,” said Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist for Invesco. “[Investors] are having concerns that these tariff wars are essentiall­y going to kick China when it’s down.”

U.S. crude oil slipped 0.8 percent to extend its losing streak. It has fallen for five weeks in a row and tumbled 21 percent since Oct. 3. Energy companies have suffered steep losses during that time.

Weak forecasts from companies including video-game company Activision Blizzard and chipmaker Skyworks Solutions also contribute­d to Friday’s decline.

The Labor Department said wholesale prices in the U.S. jumped, and Hooper said that could be linked to the tariff dispute as well. Wholesale prices rose by the most in six years in October as gasoline, food and chemical prices increased. The Labor Department’s wholesale price index has climbed 2.9 percent over the past year.

Video-game-maker Activision Blizzard tumbled after its forecast for the critical holiday season fell short of analysts’ projection­s. The stock fell 12.4 percent to $55.01, and Electronic Arts lost 5.3 percent to $88.89.

Major technology and Internet companies also turned lower. Apple fell 1.9 percent to $204.47 and Facebook shed 2 percent to $144.96. Amazon lost 2.4 percent to $1,712.43.

West Coast utility companies tumbled as wildfires worsened in South California, with tens of thousands of people forced to flee in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. PG&E plunged 16.5 percent to $39.92 and Edison Internatio­nal skidded 12.1 percent to $61.

General Electric sank another 5.7 percent to $8.58 after a JPMorgan Chase analyst cut his price target on the stock to $6 a share from $10. Stephen Tusa said six of GE’s eight divisions might be unprofitab­le in 2020.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.18 percent from 3.23 percent.

Despite the losses Friday, the S&P 500 still gained 2.1 percent this week. It climbed 2.4 percent last week but would need to rise another 5.4 percent to reach the alltime high it set on Sept. 20.

Online reviews company Yelp nose-dived after it posted weak third-quarter revenue and its forecast for the fourth quarter also fell short of Wall Street’s estimates. The company said part of the problem is an advertisin­g model that is intended to encourage advertiser­s to try the site without signing a long-term contract. Yelp said that has made its results more sensitive to short-term problems. Its stock fell 26.6 percent to $31.93.

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