US close: Stocks weaker even after jobless claims beat

Wall Street stocks closed in negative territory on Thursday, despite a better-than-expected jobless claims report.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.94% at 33,815.90, as the S&P 500 lost 0.92% to 4,134.98 and the Nasdaq Composite was off 0.94% at 13,818.41.

The Dow closed 321.41 points lower on Thursday, cutting into gains recorded in the previous session after reopening stocks led all three major indices higher.

On the data front, US jobless claims continued to slip lower, contrary to economists' expectations, hitting a pandemic-era low.

According to the Department of Labor, initial unemployment claims for the week ending on 17 April dropped by 39,000 to reach 547,000.

Secondary unemployment claims, meanwhile, dipped by 34,000 to 3.67m.

Elsewhere, the Chicago Fed's national activity index rose to 1.71 in March from -1.2 in February, better than market expectations for a print of -0.66.

Still on data, closed sales of existing homes fell 3.7% in March to 6.01m units, according to the National Association of Realtors, marking the slowest sales pace since August and a second straight month of declines.

In equity markets, AT&T closed up 4.15% after beating Wall Street forecasts, while DR Horton advanced 1.74% after raising its full-year outlook on the back of a quarterly profit beat.

Biogen lost 4.02% after reporting a 71% slump in quarterly profits, as its top-selling multiple sclerosis drug Tecfidera faced increased competition from cheaper generic versions.

Southwest Airlines descended 1.56% after saying it expected to see leisure bookings improve on the back of the US Covid-19 vaccine rollout, with the low-cost carrier expecting to break even in June.

Legacy carrier American Airlines, meanwhile, slid 4.47% after reporting a 53% year-on-year decline in quarterly revenues.

Dow Jones - Risers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $231.35 0.34%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $232.96 0.30%
Visa Inc. (V) $227.57 0.05%
3M Co. (MMM) $200.90 0.01%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $30.52 0.00%
American Express Co. (AXP) $147.16 -0.01%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $182.76 -0.19%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $54.44 -0.31%
Honeywell International Inc. (HON) $229.26 -0.54%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $129.18 -0.55%