U.S. markets closed sharply lower on Thursday amid renewed weakness in technology stocks, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the decline. However, investors largely overlooked positive economic data released on Thursday. A report from the Labor Department showed that first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell to a two-month low last week. Initial jobless claims declined to 208,000 in the week ended July 11, down 8,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 216,000. Street had expected claims to rise to 220,000 from the 215,000 originally reported for the prior week. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported a modest increase in U.S. retail sales for June. Retail sales edged up 0.2 percent in June after an upwardly revised 1.0 percent increase in May. Street had expected retail sales to rise 0.3 percent, compared with the 0.9 percent gain originally reported for the previous month.
On the sectoral front, gold stocks moved sharply lower along with the price of the precious metal, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 4.4 percent. Brokerage and steel stocks also saw notable weakness, while transportation stocks showed a significant move to the upside, resulting in a 3.2 percent surge by the Dow Jones Transportation Average. Commercial real estate, housing and healthcare stocks also saw considerable strength, limiting the downside for the broader markets.
Nasdaq dragged 387.28 points or 1.47 percent to 25,881.95, S&P 500 down 38.63 points or 0.51 percent to 7,533.77 and Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 105.67 points or 0.2 percent to 52,552.97.
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