Stocks sagged yesterday as investors backed away for a second straight day due to widening bio-terrorism anxiety, though guarded optimism on corporate results moved tech stocks a touch higher.
The Dow fell 69.40 points to end at 9,163.57, while the Nasdaq composite rose 6.59 points to 1,652.93. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped 8.44 points to 1,068.65.
Merck, the world's number 3 drug-maker, dropped $2.75 to $66.30. The Dow component's profits rose 6 per cent, with the strength of its Merck-Medco unit offsetting sluggish sales of its Vioxx arthritis treatment.
McDonald's fell 16 cents to $29.24. The world's largest restaurant's profits were down 1 per cent, despite a recovery from the effects of mad cow disease that hit its European sales.
Coca-Cola rose $1.84 to $46.12 after its earnings slightly exceeded expectations. On the tech side, Apple Computer jumped $1.01 to $18. The company's earnings topped the previous quarter's results, but it warned the September 11th attacks will hurt the current quarter.
