NEW YORK, Oct. 23 (Reuters) — US stocks were mixed on Friday, led by disappointing results from Caterpillar Inc. and strong Google Inc. earnings, while inflation worries boosted the dollar and bargain hunting lifted bonds.
Oil prices rose from a three-month low as Hurricane Wilma showed signs of hindering the recovery of oil operations in the storm-battered Gulf of Mexico.
"Google gave a big lift to the tech sector today, but some investors got overly disappointed with Caterpillar’s results and sold the more traditional companies," said Stanley Nabi, vice chairman of Silvercrest Asset Management Group in New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 65.88 points, or 0.64 percent, to end at 10,215.22. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 1.79 points, or 0.15 percent, to 1,179.59. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index gained 14.10 points, or 0.68 percent, to finish at 2,082.21.
Caterpillar, a leading US manufacturer that is often viewed as an economic barometer, accounted for nearly all the decline in blue-chip stocks. Caterpillar dropped 9.5 percent to $48.92 on the New York Stock Exchange.
"The underlying theme that’s been driving the market is that inflation is a problem and the Federal Reserve is going to raise interest rates, and that’s not good news," said Hugh Johnson, chief investment officer of Johnson Illington Advisors.
Higher interest rates hurt stocks by raising borrowing costs for companies and consumers.
