Investing.com – Wall Street was lower on Thursday as mixed economic data and rising bond yields weighed.
The S&P 500 was down over 11 points or 0.44% to 2,696.67 as of 9:43 AM ET (13:43 GMT) while the Dow composite decreased 60 points or 0.24% to 24,687.69 and tech heavy NASDAQ Composite fell nearly 34 points or 0.47% to 7,260.72.
U.S. bond yields crept back up on Thursday, which caused investor concern. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury rose 1.36% to 2.906.
Prices fall as bond yields rise. A spike in U.S. Treasury bond yields in February led to a steep decline in equity markets as investors grew concencered that rising inflation could lead to an increase in interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
In economic news, the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell less than expected, by 1,000 to 232,000. A separate report showed that the Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index unexpectedly rose in April, to a reading of 23.2 from 22.3 in March.
Technology stocks were among the biggest losers after the morning bell. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) fell 1.66% while Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) was down 1.61% and Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) decreased 2.03%. Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) dipped 3.40% after news that it was planning to acquire Merck’s consumer health business for $3.4 billion.
Elsewhere American Express (NYSE:AXP) surged 6.36% after its earnings came in higher than expected while General Electric (NYSE:GE) was up 1.91% and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) rose 1.46%.
In Europe stocks were mixed. Germany’s DAX fell 23 points or 0.19% while in France the CAC 40 increased five points or 0.10% and in London, the FTSE 100 was up four points or 0.07%. Meanwhile the pan-European Euro Stoxx 50 lost five points or 0.15% while Spain’s IBEX 35 inched up six points or 0.07%.
In commodities, gold futures fell 0.30% to $1,339.40 a troy ounce while crude oil futures increased 0.64% to $68.91 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, fell 0.02% to 89.33.