US STOCKS-S&P 500, Dow slip after grim data; Trump suggests election delay

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* Q2 GDP numbers show record 33% contraction
* Jobless claims also up, though lower than forecast
* Qualcomm, UPS, P&G up after results
* Dow falls 0.79%, S&P down 0.38%, Nasdaq up 0.34%

(Updates to early afternoon)
By Medha Singh and Devik Jain
July 30 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Dow fell on Thursday
after data painted a worrying picture of the economy, while
President Donald Trump floated the possibility of delaying the
Nov. 3 presidential elections.
The U.S. economy suffered its steepest contraction since the
Great Depression in the second quarter, as business activity
came to an abrupt halt on efforts to slow the virus outbreak.
Jobless claims also rose in the latest week, adding to signs
the momentum of economic recovery has slowed as coronavirus
cases spiraled in southern and western U.S. states. Shortly after the data, Trump, raised the idea of a delay in
elections, an idea immediately rejected by both Democrats and
his fellow Republicans in Congress, the sole branch of
government with the authority to make such a change.
Wall Street's main indexes were headed for their fourth
monthly gain in a row, with the benchmark S&P 500 about 4% below
its February record high.
"The markets have over the past several months been detached
from reality and are being fueled by Fed buying and positive
momentum," said Phil Toews, chief executive officer of Toews
Corp in New York.
"Ultimately, buyers of equities, and high yield bonds are
going to conclude that earnings are there to justify these
valuations, and regardless of the progress of vaccines or
medical treatments over the next six months, we could expect a
stock market contraction ahead."
The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose, boosted by Qualcomm Inc QCOM.O
after the chipmaker forecast fourth-quarter revenue largely
above estimates. Apple Inc AAPL.O , Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O , Alphabet Inc
GOOGL.O and Facebook Inc FB.O will report earnings later on
Thursday, with some on Wall Street questioning their valuations
after this year's gains.
Shares of the companies, which have a combined market value
of about $5 trillion, erased early losses to rise between 0.2%
and 0.5%. "Tech earnings will deliver at least as expected. It's the
part of the market that effectively is making everything okay,
because it's a big enough percent of major indices," Toews
added.
Economically sensitive sectors — financials .SPSY , energy
.SPNY and materials .SPLRCM fell the most among major S&P
sectors.
At 1:08 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 208.72 points, or 0.79%, at 26,330.85, the S&P 500 .SPX
was down 12.43 points, or 0.38%, at 3,246.01. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was up 35.44 points, or 0.34%, at 10,578.38.
The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday acknowledged the surge
in cases was likely stalling recovery, while pledging to support
the economy as long as necessary, giving a boost to Wall
Street's three main indexes late in the session. United Parcel Service Inc UPS.N , and Procter & Gamble Co
PG.N gained following quarterly results on Thursday, with
Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N up slightly as it started human safety
trials for its COVID-19 vaccine. Corporate earnings have tended to be better than
expectations so far, but the scale of the economic damage from
the pandemic, and the likelihood it will drag on are weighing on
investors' minds.
Top officials from the Trump administration planned more
talks with congressional Republicans and Democrats on Thursday,
despite flagging hopes of reaching an agreement to extend
coronavirus aid before a Friday deadline. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 2.17-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 1.42-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 26 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 69 new highs and 26 new lows.