JPMorgan drags blue chips down, Nasdaq gains
The Dow and S&P 500 slipped on Thursday after JPMorgan's earnings and China's soft trade data revived worries about the impact of slower growth on profits.
The declines put an end to three straight days of gains that capped off a 12 percent increase in the S&P 500 since hitting a low on Oct. 4. The Nasdaq stayed in positive territory, helped by semiconductor shares.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 40.72 points, or 0.35 percent, to end at 11,478.13. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index shed 3.59 points, or 0.30 percent, to 1,203.66. But the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 15.51 points, or 0.60 percent, to close at 2,620.24.
European shares finished lower, pulling back from the previous session's nine-week closing high after weaker-than-expected China trade data raised fresh concerns about the global economic outlook.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares finished 1.1 percent lower at 966.37 points after hitting a nine-week closing high in the previous session. The index is down 14 percent so far this year.
Japan's Nikkei stock average rose to a 1-month high on Thursday on expectations that Europe will come up with measures to shore up its banks, with chip-related stocks climbing on a boost in sales for ASML Holding NV.The Nikkei benchmark climbed 1 percent to 8,823.25, while the broader Topix index advanced 0.7 percent to 758.83.
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