Investing.com – U.S. stocks closed lower, as a slide in both tech and energy stocks weighed on the broader market while weaker-than-expected labor market data added to negative sentiment.
Energy continued its recent trend lower, falling 1.8%, despite weekly U.S. inventory data showing a larger-than-expected draw in both gasoline and crude stockpiles.
Tech stocks suffered a similar fate, as investors continued to rotate out of the tech sector, with Facebook, Apple, and Amazon dropping more than 0.5%.
Sentiment further soured on equities, after the release of weaker-than-expected initial jobless claims and private sector payrolls data, suggested a possible slowdown in labor market activity ahead of non-farm payrolls due Friday.
The ADP National Employment Report showed private sector payrolls increased by 158,000 jobs last month, lower than the 230,000 positions created in May and below economists' expectations for a gain of 185,000.
In a separate report, the Labor Department said initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 4,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 248,000 for the week ended July 1. It was the third straight weekly increase in claims.
In corporate news, share of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) sank 5.5%, after Goldman sachs downgraded the electric automaker’s shares amid concerns that the carmaker will struggle to hit delivery targets.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 21,321.82, down 156 points. The S&P 500 closed 0.94% lower while the Nasdaq Composite closed at 6089.46, down 1%.
‘Bulls and Bears’ on Wall Street
The top Dow gainers for the session: E I du Pont de Nemours & Co (NYSE:DD) up 0.5%, Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT) up 0.2% and MDC Holdings Inc (NYSE:MDC), up 0%
General Mills Inc (NYSE:GIS) down 3.8%, Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) down 2.1% and Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK) down 1.7%, were among the worst Dow performers of the session.