Despite a good start based on strong earnings reports from General Electric and United Technologies the market dropped later in the day as the price of oil and the Canadian dollar rose.

In Toronto, the S&P/TSX composite index lost 2.15 points at 9,086.83. The TSX Venture Exchange rose 19.02 points to 1,809.03.

The Canadian dollar climbed 0.79 of a cent at 81.89¢ U.S.

Major U.S. exchanges dropped again for the third straight week. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 78.48 points at 10,392.99. The Nasdaq composite index dropped 11.61 points lower to 2,034.27, while the S&P 500 index slid back 7.59 points to 1,167.82.

Market reaction to the first slew of quarterly earnings continues to be lukewarm despite positive news from big companies such as Citigroup and Apple Computer.

The price of crude oil for March delivery rose $1.22, or 2.6%, to close at U.S.$48.53 a barrel. Investors have been concerned about supply disruptions due to the Iraqi elections on Jan. 30 combined with an OPEC forecast for increased demand in the first half of the year.