Markets Right Now: US indexes end mostly higher; tech drags
By Associated Press
Apr 22, 2016 3:11 PM CDT

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on financial markets (all times local):

4:00 p.m.

The stock market is closing out a mixed day mostly higher, despite a drop in big technology names.

Energy companies notched modest gains Friday as oil and natural gas prices climbed. Banks also rose.

Technology giants took some of the biggest losses after several of them turned in disappointing earnings reports.

Microsoft slumped 7 percent and Google parent Alphabet dropped 5 percent. Other tech companies also fell, including Visa, which declined 2 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 21 points, or 0.1 percent, to 18,003.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was little changed at 2,091. The Nasdaq composite fell 39 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,906.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.88 percent.

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11:45 a.m.

U.S. stocks are mostly lower in midday trading as disappointing earnings from Microsoft and other big tech companies weigh on the market.

Microsoft sank 7 percent Friday after reporting a surprise drop in revenue and profit for the first quarter. Google parent Alphabet also fell 5 percent after its own results also fell short of what analysts were expecting.

The slump in tech outweighed gains in oil and gas companies as energy prices turned higher.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 27 points, or 0.2 percent, to 17,951.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell seven points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,084. The Nasdaq composite fell 62 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,883.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.88 percent.

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9:35 a.m. Eastern

U.S. stocks are off to a mixed start as gains in banks and energy companies are being offset by weakness in the technology sector.

Oil and gas companies benefited from increases in energy prices, but Microsoft dropped 7 percent after reporting disappointing earnings. Google parent Alphabet also fell 4 percent after its results fell short of forecasts.

Several other companies were also moving on earnings news. Visa fell 2 percent after cutting its revenue forecast for the year, while railroad operator Norfolk Southern jumped 8 percent rose as it slashed costs.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged up eight points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,991.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was little changed at 2,092. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 34 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,911.

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11:35 a.m.

Disappointing earnings statements out of the U.S. from the likes of Microsoft and Alphabet, the corporate parent of Google, are weighing on European stock markets.

Germany's DAX is down 0.2 percent at 10,417 while the CAC-40 in France has fallen 0.1 percent at 4,579. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares is down 0.7 percent at 6,339.

Despite the falls, it's been a good week for stock markets around the world.

Chris Beauchamp, market analyst at IG, says "the dip is nothing more than a bit of extended profit-taking" at the moment.

However, he is warning that "the current optimistic atmosphere could turn sour very quickly" should more bad numbers come out of the U.S. Top of the agenda Friday are McDonald's and General Electric.