Stocks dip as earnings disappoint

Stocks finished mostly lower on North American stock marketsFridayamid disappointing results from the U.S. financial sector.

In Toronto, the S&P/TSX composite indexeked out a narrow gain of.25 of apoint to close at 11,504.76.

The Canadian dollar closedlower for a second day, down .35 of a cent at 96.32 cents US.

The price of gold went back and forth, but the December bullion contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange ended the session up 90 centsto $1,050.70 US an ounce.

Oil reached yet a new one-year high. The November NYMEX crude oil contractgained 95 cents to close at $78.53 a barrel. Natural gas finished up 30 cents at$4.78 per million British Thermal Units.

In New York, markets lagged amid earnings reports from General Electric and Bank America.

GE's third-quarter profit fell 44 per cent from a year earlier to $2.4 billion. Earnings were hit by lower profits from its GE Capital division, which lends to businesses.

Bank of America lost more than $2 billion in the third quarter, after paying dividends on preferred shares. It also set aside $11 billion for loans it expects won't be repaid, $5 billion more than in the year-ago period.

The Dow Jones industrials dropped67.03 points to 9,995.91. The S&P 500 index was down 8.88 points to 1,087.68.