TECH STOCKS: Earnings News Brings Markets DownTECH STOCKS: Earnings News Brings Markets Down

Troublesome earnings from technology companies helped send stock market indexes lower Friday despite good news on the economy.

The information 100 index of tech stocks fell 2.3% to 296.62, and was down 0.9% for the week. The Nasdaq-100 tracking stock fell 85 cents, or 2.4%, to $34.61, as nearly 98 million shares changed hands; it ended the week down 0.5%. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 69.93 points, or 0.7%, to 9,721.79. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 37.78 points, or 1.9%, to 1,912.36. And the S&P 500 stock index fell 10.75 points, or 1.02%, to close at 1,039.32.

For the week, the S&P 500 rose 0.1% and the Dow rose 0.5%, their third consecutive winning weeks, while the Nasdaq fell 0.2%. Earlier in the week, the major indexes hit peaks not seen since last year.

Disappointing financial results from large companies helped fuel the declines. Shares of eBay fell $2.64, or 4.6%, to $54.86; after the bell on Thursday, the online auctioneer reported earnings that fell short of analysts' expectations. Sun Microsystems fell 7 cents, or 1.9%, to $3.56, after the computer maker on Thursday reported a money-losing quarter and an 8% drop in revenue. Negative earnings news from IBM and Nokia also hurt the Dow industrials.

Corporate earnings news was tempered by two positive economic reports. The Commerce Department reported better-than-expected starts for new homes, and the University of Michigan's October consumer-sentiment index exceeded Wall Street's target.