New York - US
stocks closed lower on Thursday on some disappointing earnings from
technology and consumer companies.
Consumer product firms Colgate-Palmolive and Kellogg's, as well as technology companies Akamai Technologies, Nvidia and Symantec all issued worse-than-expected quarterly earnings.
The drop overshadowed gains in commodity producers, spurred by rises in oil and copper prices. ExxonMobil reported Thursday that profits nearly doubled in the second quarter to 7.56 billion dollars.
The blue-chip
Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 30.72 points, or 0.29 per cent, to close at 10,467.16. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index dropped 4.6 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 1,101.53. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was down 12.87 points, or 0.57 per cent, to 2,251.69.
The US currency fell to 76.47 euro cents from 76.97 euro cents on Wednesday. The dollar fell against the Japanese currency to 86.96
yen from 87.48 yen the previous day.
