Market report

Stock drop erases much of week's gains

Biggest loss in more than 3 weeks affects energy, banking, consumer sectors

NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks skidded Friday in a wave of selling that wiped out most of the market's gains from earlier this week. A drop in oil prices took energy companies sharply lower. Investors were also troubled by worries that Britain may be more likely to leave the European Union.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 119.85 points, or 0.7 percent, to 17,865.34. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 19.41 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,096.07. The Nasdaq composite shed 64.07 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,894.55.

Oil prices fell by the largest amount in two months, and bank stocks slumped. Machinery, technology and consumer stocks also lost ground. It was the market's biggest loss in more than three weeks.

Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager for U.S. Bank's Private Client Reserve, said investors are guessing at the outcome of the British referendum and the Federal Reserve's meeting next week, as well as the impending U.S. presidential election.

"There's just not a good way to handicap the outcome just yet," he said.

U.S. crude fell $1.49, or 2.9 percent, to $49.07 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oil prices, fell $1.28, or 2.5 percent, to $50.56 a barrel in London. Oil prices had reached 11-month highs in the last few days.

ConocoPhillips shares fell $2.06, or 4.4 percent, to $44.51, and oilfield services company Schlumberger shed $1.43, or 1.8 percent, to $78.53.

As they did Thursday, banks fell along with bond yields. Lower bond yields drive down interest rates on mortgages and other kinds of loans, and that makes them less profitable for banks. Citigroup sank $1.11, or 2.5 percent, to $43.90, and JPMorgan Chase lost 91 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $63.84.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note declined to 1.64 percent from 1.69 percent.

Stocks started the week with three days of gains and reached their highest levels in months, but finished back where they started. For the week the Dow was a bit higher, the Nasdaq lower, and the S&P 500 essentially unchanged.

That showed investors are cautiously optimistic, as the U.S. economy is still growing and corporate profits are expected to pick up later in the year. But they're also very sensitive to uncertainty or potential trouble, whether it's from slower global growth or Fed policy or Britain's status in the European Union.

Some investors fear that Britain's economy will be damaged if it votes on June 23 to leave the EU, and that other nations might follow Britain's lead.

Consumer stocks also fell, with some of the sharpest losses going to big names. Netflix slid $3.34, or 3.4 percent, to $93.75, and Amazon declined $9.74, or 1.3 percent, to $717.91.

Tax preparer H&R Block posted a bigger profit and more revenue than analysts expected, sending its stock up $2.69, or 12.5 percent, to $24.23. That was by far the largest gain among S&P 500 stocks.

Gold rose $3.20 to $1,275.90 an ounce. Silver gained 6 cents to $17.33 an ounce. Copper fell 1 cent to $2.03 a pound.

Business on 06/11/2016

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