Wall Street stocks retreated Friday as large US banks reported their results, marking the start of corporate earnings season.

JPMorgan Chase shares slumped 3.7 percent although it logged higher profits with help from elevated interest rates and service fees.

Chief executive Jamie Dimon warned of geopolitical uncertainty and the risk of persistent inflation.

Citi shares were up 1.9 percent as it beat revenue expectations, while Wells Fargo shares slid 0.9 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6 percent at 38,244.56, while the broad-based S&P 500 Index lost 0.6 percent at 5,166.84.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.8 percent to 16,314.43.

This came a day after the European Central Bank held interest rates steady again as anticipated but said that slowing inflation could open the door to easing monetary policy. The development raised hopes of a first-rate cut in June.

"Geopolitical worries have triggered some risk aversion, but worries about a growth slowdown have presumably triggered some residual angst about corporate earnings not living up to expectations," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com in a note.