Stock market today: Wall Street falls sharply to close out its worst week since October

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks fell sharply following a mixed start to earnings reporting season. The S&P 500 sank 1.5% Friday. The Dow dropped 1.2%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 1.6% from its record. Worries about tensions in the Middle East rattled financial markets, and Treasury yields fell as investors looked for safer places for their money. JPMorgan Chase was among the stock market’s heaviest weights after giving a forecast for a key source of income that was below analysts’ estimates.

The pressure is always on companies to produce fatter profits. But it’s particularly acute now given worries that the other main lever that sets stock prices, interest rates, may not offer much lift in the near term. This year’s jump in oil prices has further raised worries, because it could add more pressure on inflation. They rose again Friday as tensions continue to roil the Middle East. Israel has said it could strike Iran if it launched an attack from its territory following the killings of Iranian generals in a blast at the Iranian consulate in Syria.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.50% from 4.58% late Thursday. Gold, which has been setting records, got near $2,450 per ounce for before paring its gain. That's why so much scrutiny is on corporate profits. While the downside of a remarkably resilient U.S. economy is a diminished chance of cuts to rates, the upside is that it should help prop up sales and earnings for businesses.

On Wall Street, Wells Fargo slipped 0.7% after swinging between gains and losses. It beat analysts' profit targets for the latest quarter in its first report since the Biden administration eased some of the restrictions on the bank after a series of scandals. But its net interest income, a key component of bank profits, came up shy of forecasts.

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