US stocks end lower amid mixed earnings reports; Dow falls 231.77
Wall Street has pulled back as investors worry that companies' forecasts signal little easing of the weakness gripping the economy. After logging sharp gains in the previous session, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 2.5 percent, while the Nasdaq composite index lost more than 4 percent following a weak showing by technology names.
According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 231.77, or 2.50 percent, to 9,033.66.
Broader indexes also declined. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 30.35, or 3.08 percent, to 955.05. The Nasdaq composite index shed 73.35, or 4.14 percent, to 1,696.68.
Declining issues outpaced advancers by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to a light 1.16 billion shares.
