Stocks Drop on Bank Earnings, Tech Gains

U.S. stocks closed with moderate losses Thursday, weighed by a disappointing report from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and trade data from China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 40.72 points, or 0.35%, to 11,478.13. The S&P 500 ended down 3.59 points, or 0.30%, at 1,203.66. The Nasdaq Composite gained 15.51 points, or 0.60%, to 2,620.24.

Mitt Romney on Thursday will outline trade policies he says are aimed at punishing China’s trade practices and opening more markets around the world for American goods.

Google Inc. on Thursday reported a 29% jump in adjusted net profits, aided by a big surge in revenue as the Internet powerhouse also touted a huge gain in users of its social networking platform. It reported a third-quarter profit of $2.7 billion, or $8.33 a share, compared with a profit of $2.2 billion, or $6.72 a share, for the year-earlier period.

The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage rose sharply this week after falling below 4 percent for the first time in history. Freddie Mac said Thursday that the rate on the 30-year fixed loan rose to 4.12 percent. That’s up from 3.94 percent last week, the lowest rate ever according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Crude-oil futures fell 1.6% on Thursday. Crude for November delivery dropped $1.34 to end at $84.23 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.