Stock markets across North America were hit with widespread selling Thursday following disappointing earnings reports from U.S. giants GE and Yahoo!

The TSE 300 composite index fell 111.36 points to 7,688.70.

Overall, 13 of the TSE’s 14 sub-indices fell, led by a 3.52% drop in the communications and media group. Utilities, led by BCE, slumped 3.41%. The tech-heavy industrial products group slid 2.51%.

Nortel Networks was the most actively-trade stock Thursday, falling 43¢ to close at $5.26.

BCE slipped $1.15 to $23.90. BCE subsidiary Bell Canada said it was teaming up with Manitoba Tel to fight Telus and its market share in Albert and British Columbia. Manitoba Tel rose 30¢ to $32; Telus fell $1.23 to $15.67.

Cognos tumbled $4.67 to $36.97 after the company lowered its earnings and revenue guidance.

TD Bank CEO Charles Baillie quashed rumours he was about to retire. At the bank’s annual meeting in Halifax, Baillie said reports of his imminent departure were “greatly exaggerated.” TD Bank shares dropped 40¢ to $44.

Suncor fell $1 to $54. The company said a fire at its Millennium oil sands hydrogen unit would lead to a production shutdown for 10 days.

And Yahoo shares fell $2.99 US to $15.45 US after it said its core advertising business remained very weak. Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock to “neutral” from “buy”.

The S&P/CDNX Composite Index closed down 7.51 points at 1158.19. Trading was heavy on a volume of 38.7 million shares, with 205 advances, 247 declines and 560 issues unchanged.

In New York, stocks plunged Thursday as investors failed to get excited about earnings and expectations from General Electric and Yahoo! Blue-chips and tech stocks sold off across the board.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended with a loss of 205.65 points, or 2%, to 10,176.08. The Nasdaq composite index fell 41.82 points, or 2.4%, to 1,725.25, and the S&P 500 fell 26.78 points, or 2.4%, to 1,103.69.

GE saw its shares fall US$3.45 to US$33.75 after reporting a drop in first-quarter income due to lower than expected revenue.

IBM plunged US$4.82 to US$84.19 following a report that the company was the subject of a federal inquiry by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC late Thursday took the unusual step of responding to that report. The agency confirmed an investigation had been opened, but said its investigation was closed soon after without taking any action.