US close: Stocks end lower as oil prices fall, investors digest earnings

US stocks closed in the red on Thursday as oil prices fell and investors weighed a slate of corporate earnings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.23% to 18,161.12 points, the S&P 500 slid 0.14% to 2,141.34 points and the Nasdaq slipped 0.09% to 5,241.83 points

Oil prices retreated on a stronger dollar and profit taking following a rally in the previous session when data from the US Energy Information Administration showed a surprise drawdown in crude inventories last week and Saudi Arabia said countries outside OPEC would be willing to join the cartel’s plan to curb production.

West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 2.6% to $51.33 per barrel and Brent dipped 2.4% to $50.57 per barrel at 2044 BST.

The dollar

Shares in drugstore giant Walgreens Boots Alliance gained as it reported fourth quarter adjusted earnings that beat analysts’ estimates.

The Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s rallied after it reported better-than-expected quarterly profit due to lower costs and a rise in net interest revenue.

Dunkin' Brands Group slumped as the owner of Dunkin’ Donuts reported mixed third-quarter results with earnings slightly topping expectations but revenue falling for the first time in nearly four years.

Verizon Communications was on the back foot as it reported a worse-than-anticipated drop in third quarter revenue.

Elsewhere, Tesla Motors Inc. edged lower after the electric car maker revealed new self-driving hardware that it said will not be ready for consumers to purchase immediately due to regulatory issues.

On the macro-economic front, data from the Labor Department showed US initial jobless claims rose by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 260,000 in the week ended 15 October. Economists had forecast 250,000 claims.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank’s monthly index on regional manufacturing edged down to 9.7 in October from 12.8 in September, exceeding forecasts of 5.0.

Existing home sales rose 3.2% from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.47 million in September, the National Association of Realtors said, ahead of expectations of a 5.35 million sales rate.

The leading economic index increased 0.2% in September, compared to a 0.2% decline in August, the Conference Board revealed.

Meanwhile, New York Fed President William Dudley said late on Wednesday that he sees the central bank raising interest rates before the end of the year.

“If we raise the federal-funds rate a quarter of a [percentage] point, that’s not really that big of a deal,” Dudley said in a question and answer session following a speech in New York.

“This idea that it’s this incredible fork in the road, I think people are exaggerating the significance of that.”

In the Eurozone, stocks closed higher as the European Central Bank on Thursday decided to keep key rates and the asset purchase programme unchanged, as expected by analysts. ECB President Mario Draghi said the Governing Council did not discuss extending or ending the QE programme. However, he was seen to suggest that an extension to asset purchases past March 2017 may be on the cards at the 8 December policy meeting when new economic forecasts become available.

Dow Jones - Risers

American Express Co. (AXP) $67.19 9.70%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $145.30 0.64%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $126.46 0.46%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $92.22 0.32%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $114.93 0.30%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $151.69 0.28%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $51.91 0.21%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $174.82 0.18%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $61.96 0.15%
General Electric Co. (GE) $29.10 0.14%