NEW YORK: Stocks closed mostly lower Friday after investors found little to like in weak corporate earnings reports and news of only tepid growth in the U.S. economy in the third quarter.
The Dow Jones industrial average managed a gain of 3.53 points to close at 13,107.21 after spending much of the day in the red.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 1.03 points to 1,411.94 and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.83 points to 2,987.95.
Even economic data that is mixed or positive won’t outweigh weak earnings, said Lawrence Creatura, a portfolio manager with Federated Investors.
“Company earnings trump macro data. Because investors own Apple, they don’t own GDP,” Creatura said.