US close: Yen strength spooks traders

Wall Street finished the day lower, weighed down by losses in the commodities space and banks amid a slide in the value of the US dollar versus the Japanese yen, although there was some better-than-expected news on the jobs front.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.98% or 174.09 points lower at 17,541.96, the S&P 500 was down 1.20% and the Nasdaq off 1.47%.

At the same time, the rally in oil prices - sparked by Wednesday’s better-than-expected data from the Energy Information Administration – lost steam as an official from the state-run South Oil Company in Iraq said exports from the country’s southern ports rose to an average of 3.494m barrels per day in April from 3.286m in March.

West Texas Intermediate was down 56 cents by the closing bell at $37.26 a barrel on the NYMEX.

In currency markets, the dollar tumbled to a 17-month low against the yen.

“Traders were spooked by the strength of the yen which saw the USD/JPY fall to its lowest level since October 2014. This was when Japan’s policymakers extended their monetary stimulus programme in an effort to drive the currency lower to boost exports and inflation," said David Morrison, senior market strategist at SpreadCo.

“Investors dumped stocks on the US open on fears that the BOJ has run out of ammunition when it comes to effectively loosening monetary policy. Another complication is that Japan takes over the chairmanship of G7 next month where all members have said they won’t intervene to weaken their currencies. Japan’s excessive debt-to-GDP ratio makes it particularly vulnerable to deflationary pressures which are increased by yen strength.”

Meanwhile, investors continued to digest the minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting that came out late on Wednesday.

The minutes revealed policymakers discussed the possibility of a rate hike in April but the overall consensus was that the risks from a global economic slowdown meant a cautious approach was needed.

Amid the downbeat tone, a better-than-expected release on unemployment claims failed to provide any cheer.

Data from the Labor Department showed the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell a little more than expected last week.

US initial jobless claims fell by 9,000 to 267,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level, versus economists’ expectations for a drop to 270,000.

This marked 57 consecutive weeks of initial claims below 300,000 - the longest streak since 1973.

In corporate news, Sprint Corp fell after announcing late on Wednesday that it has reached a deal with several bankrupt entities to sell and then lease back network assets which will then be used as collateral to raise $2.2bn.

Drugstore chain Rite Aid edged lower despite posting better-than-expected fourth quarter profit.

Shares in Pacific Sunwear tumbled after the retailer filed for bankruptcy protection.

Costco Wholesale Corp slid after releasing its March sales figures.

On the upside, Valeant Pharmaceuticals rallied after lenders gave the embattled drug company an extension on the filing of two key reports, removing the immediate threat of default.

Home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond pushed higher after its fourth quarter earnings and revenue surpassed analysts’ forecasts.

McDonald’s nudged a touch higher after saying its long-term chairman Andrew McKenna was stepping down.

From a sector standpoint, the worst performing industrial groups were: non-ferrous metals (-7.91%), Platinum&precious metals (-3.89%), Investment services (-3.16%) and Banks (-2.77%).

S&P 500 - Risers
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $99.99 +11.66%
Southwestern Energy Co. (SWN) $8.01 +4.30%
Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. (COG) $23.27 +4.12%
Range Resources Corp. (RRC) $32.83 +3.30%
Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) $27.87 +2.84%
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) $37.46 +2.71%
Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) $11.22 +1.81%
NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $12.24 +1.75%
ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) $46.09 +1.45%
Williams Companies Inc. (WMB) $15.71 +1.42%

S&P 500 - Fallers
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $8.85 -7.91%
Carmax Inc. (KMX) $49.48 -7.15%
Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) $2.10 -6.67%
F5 Networks Inc. (FFIV) $97.72 -5.94%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $148.03 -5.73%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $86.30 -5.49%
Genworth Financial Inc. (GNW) $2.50 -5.30%
Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) $30.62 -5.29%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $24.10 -5.23%
Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $26.39 -5.17%

Dow Jones I.A - Risers
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $100.89 +0.52%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $128.14 +0.49%
3M Co. (MMM) $167.16 +0.21%

Dow Jones I.A - Fallers
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $150.41 -3.08%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $52.00 -2.84%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $57.32 -2.53%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $108.54 -2.18%
American Express Co. (AXP) $58.86 -1.70%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $31.55 -1.65%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $27.60 -1.43%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $74.17 -1.40%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $96.16 -1.35%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $114.50 -1.23%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Cerner Corp. (CERN) $55.98 +1.36%
Express Scripts Holding Co (ESRX) $70.05 +1.35%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $31.68 +1.08%
Sandisk Corp. (SNDK) $76.32 +0.59%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $61.17 +0.56%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $10.51 +0.38%
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) $48.97 +0.33%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $148.03 -5.73%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $86.30 -5.49%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $24.10 -5.23%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $27.91 -3.53%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $168.21 -3.42%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $63.35 -3.33%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $43.25 -3.29%
NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $25.72 -3.16%
Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) $257.20 -3.10%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $56.70 -3.06%