Dow sinks 115 points, pulled down by tech sector

Tumbling technology shares pulled the overall stock market lower, sending the Dow Jones industrial average to its lowest close in almost 12 weeks.

The market’s slide, abetted by disappointing economic data as well as debt worries in Europe, came despite upbeat earnings reports from Ford Motor, Eastman Kodak, Procter & Gamble and others.

The tech sector slumped after San Diego cellphone-chip maker Qualcomm lowered its forecast for sales this year.

The Dow Jones industrial average sank 115.70 points, or 1.1%, to 10,120.46. Early in the day, it was down as much as 180 points. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped 12.97 points, or 1.2%, to 1,084.53. The Dow and S&P closed at their lowest levels since Nov. 6.

The tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index tumbled 1.9%.

Declining stocks outnumbered advancing ones by nearly 3 to 1.

On the economic front, the Labor Department reported that first-time unemployment claims fell by 12,000 last week, to 470,000. Economists had expected a bigger drop. Orders for durable goods rose 0.3%, much less than expected. That offset further signs of improvement in quarterly corporate results.

Continued concerns about the fiscal health of governments in Greece and Portugal also contributed to the decline on Wall Street.

“The earnings season has been good, but macro issues like growth and political stability are clearly an overarching concern,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at investment bank Jefferies & Co.

Among stocks of companies reporting earnings, P&G was up 1.4%. Kodak soared 25% after posting its first profit in more than a year.

In the tech arena, Qualcomm dropped 14% on its revised outlook. Apple lost 4.1%, more than erasing its gain Wednesday after the company unveiled its iPad tablet computer.

In Europe, stocks fell on the worries about government debt. Key indexes fell 1.8% in Germany and 1.9% in France.

nathaniel.popper@

latimes.com