The Dow had its biggest fall in a month today, as investors showed anxiety over third-quarter earnings. The key index dropped 85.84 points from yesterday's record high to 14,078.69, after aluminum maker Alcoa announced a sales slippage of 3.2%. Boeing contributed to the bearish day with a 2.7% loss, Bloomberg reports, after it pushed back delivery of its much-delayed 787 Dreamliner for 6 more months.
The Nasdaq gained 7.70 to close at 2,811.61 while the S&P dropped 2.68 to 1,562.47. A Bloomberg survey predicts a slowdown in profit growth in the S&P companies for the third quarter. And if the economy is losing momentum, it's likely to get worse in the months ahead. As one strategist predicted, “The fourth quarter should be the one where we really start to see some pressure.” (More Dow Jones stories.)