US STOCKS-Tech weighs on Wall St as virus cases mount

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* Intel hits four-month low, rival AMD rises
* Drugmakers fall ahead of Trump's pricing order
* American Express down after quarterly profit plunges
* Indexes down: Dow 0.60%, S&P 0.74%, Nasdaq 1.14%

(Updates to early afternoon)
By Medha Singh
July 24 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were set to fall for the
second straight day on Friday as friction between United States
and China and fears over rising U.S. COVID-19 cases dampened
demand for risky assets.
Shares of Intel Corp INTC.O tumbled 16%, weighing the most
on all three indexes after the company said it was six months
behind schedule in developing next-generation, power-efficient
chip technology and that it would consider farming out more work
to outside semiconductor foundries. Rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD.O gained 14.6%, but
the broader Philadelphia semiconductor index .SOX dropped
1.1%.
Shares of U.S. drugmakers fell ahead of executive orders by
President Donald Trump aimed at lowering drug
prices. The healthcare index .SPXHC shed 1.4%.
The S&P 500 and the Dow are set to clock in their first
weekly decline in four as investors feared that the COVID-19
health crisis that has spiraled in recent weeks and has infected
over 4 million Americans, could hamper a recovery in economic
activity.
Optimism about a potential coronavirus vaccine and fiscal
stimulus package had helped the benchmark S&P 500 hit a
five-month high earlier this week.
"U.S. equities are in consolidation mode for a good reason.
We've seen a strong performance in the last three months," said
Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth
Management in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
"When you look further into the second half of the year,
there's reason to expect some volatility in the broad market ...
the duration and impact of COVID-19 is still unknown."
Latest survey showed U.S. business activity increased to a
six-month high in July, but companies reported a drop in new
orders as a resurgence in new COVID-19 cases weighed on demand.
Sentiment took a hit earlier in the day after Beijing
ordered Washington to close its consulate in the city of
Chengdu, days after U.S. ordered the closure of the Chinese
consulate in Houston. At 12:43 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was down 159.53 points, or 0.60%, at 26,492.80 and the S&P 500
.SPX was down 24.03 points, or 0.74%, at 3,211.63. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 118.90 points, or 1.14%, at
10,342.51.
Of the 113 S&P 500 companies that have reported quarterly
results, 80.5% of them have beaten dramatically lowered profit
estimates, according to IBES Refinitiv data.
Oilfield services giant Schlumberger NV SLB.N dropped 1.6%
as it outlined plans for deeper spending cuts after recording a
$3.7 billion charge and a second straight quarterly loss.
American Express Co AXP.N slipped 0.2% after it reported
an 85% slump in quarterly profit as credit card spending
collapsed. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.70-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and for a 2.33-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded eight new 52-week highs and no new
low, while the Nasdaq recorded 19 new highs and 17 new lows.