US STOCKS-Wall St slides on coronavirus fears, Intel offers support

U.S. stocks fell on Friday, as investors were cautious heading into the weekend amid renewed concerns over the fallout of a coronavirus outbreak from China. Intel Corp stood out with an 8.4% gain after the chipmaker forecast better-than-expected 2020 earnings, joining many of its peers to signal a recovery in chip demand.

After a record open for the Nasdaq, Wall Street's main indexes lost ground as U.S. health officials confirmed a second U.S. case of the coronavirus in a Chicago woman and said as many as 63 potential cases were being investigated. That added to nerves after the outbreak in China killed 26 people and infected more than 800 in the past week, raising concerns about its fallout on the global economy.

"It's been a headline risk for the market," said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Financial. "The question becomes whether or not this continues to spread quickly. The other issue is it's a Friday. Do investors want to go long into the weekend or do they want to take some profits? Because the virus is not going to recede."

Airlines and casino stocks fell again, with United Airlines Holdings Inc and American Airlines Group Inc shedding about 4%. Wynn Resorts Ltd and Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd fell about 3%. Big banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co and Bank of America Corp fell more than 1.5%, tracking a drop in U.S. Treasury yields.

At 12:56 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.44% at 29,032.89. The S&P 500 fell 0.65% to 3,303.91 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.52% to 9,353.15. All three indexes were on track for their worst weekly declines since September, with quarterly earnings reports coming largely in-line with expectations.

Analysts expect earnings at S&P 500 companies to drop 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to Refinitiv IBES data. American Express Co rose 2.7% after reporting a better-than-expected quarterly profit as more people used its credit cards.

Healthcare stocks fell 1.5%, dragged down by Bristol-Myers Squibb Co and Amgen Inc. Energy stocks dropped 1.4%, hit by weaker oil prices on concerns that the coronavirus outbreak would curb travel and oil demand.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 2.21-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 2.60-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P index recorded 84 new 52-week highs and three new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 110 new highs and 44 new lows.