Investing.com - U.S. stocks were lower on Thursday, after the release of U.S. data on initial jobless claims and economic growth as investors remained concerned over the handling of the euro zone’s debt crisis ahead of a key meeting on Friday.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.47%, the S&P 500 index lost 0.70%, while the Nasdaq Composite index retreated 0.44%.
The U.S. Department of Labor said that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance last week fell less-than-expected to 359,000, although remaining close to the lowest level since April 2008.
A separate report showed that the U.S. economy grew by 0.3% during the final three months of 2011, unchanged from a preliminary estimate.
Meanwhile, sentiment was weighed by concerns over rising Spanish borrowing costs ahead of the government’s budget statement, amid fears that the government will fail to implement harsh austerity measures to slash the country’s deficit, in the face of public unrest and a looming recession.
On Friday, euro zone finance ministers were expected to decide to run the EUR500 billion permanent European Stability Mechanism alongside the EUR200 billion committed by the temporary fund, the European Financial Stability Facility.
Financial stocks were broadly lower as U.S. lenders tracked their European counterparts’ downward trend. Shares in Citigroup plummeted 1.24% and Bank of America dropped 1.03%, while JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs declined 0.91% and 0.11%.
Bank of America said Wednesday evening that it more than quadrupled what it paid its CEO Brian Moynihan in 2011 but added that it's likely to curtail Moynihan's pay this year, reflecting the company's rocky performance in 2011.
Meanwhile, Best Buy plunged 7.02% after the electronics chain posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results and added it will close 50 stores and cut 400 positions.
Mosaic also tumbled 2.16% after the fertilizer maker posted a sharp decline in earnings, hurt by lower potash fertilizer sales and higher costs in phosphate fertilizer.
On the upside, gene sequencing company Illumina surged 3.93% after Roche Holding hiked its cash bid for the U.S. firm to USD6.7 billion, as the Swiss drug maker sought to win over shareholders before Illumina's annual meeting next month.
Shares in Red Hat Inc. also surged 9.69% after the company’s quarterly profit beat expectations for the fifth straight quarter on higher subscription revenue. The business software maker also said it will buy back USD300 million of its shares.
Other stocks in focus included Research In Motion, scheduled to post earnings after-the-bell.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply lower. The EURO STOXX 50 plummeted 1.73%, France’s CAC 40 plunged 1.24%, Germany's DAX tumbled 1.80%, while Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 1.23%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.55%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.7%.
Later in the day, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was also due to speak.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.47%, the S&P 500 index lost 0.70%, while the Nasdaq Composite index retreated 0.44%.
The U.S. Department of Labor said that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance last week fell less-than-expected to 359,000, although remaining close to the lowest level since April 2008.
A separate report showed that the U.S. economy grew by 0.3% during the final three months of 2011, unchanged from a preliminary estimate.
Meanwhile, sentiment was weighed by concerns over rising Spanish borrowing costs ahead of the government’s budget statement, amid fears that the government will fail to implement harsh austerity measures to slash the country’s deficit, in the face of public unrest and a looming recession.
On Friday, euro zone finance ministers were expected to decide to run the EUR500 billion permanent European Stability Mechanism alongside the EUR200 billion committed by the temporary fund, the European Financial Stability Facility.
Financial stocks were broadly lower as U.S. lenders tracked their European counterparts’ downward trend. Shares in Citigroup plummeted 1.24% and Bank of America dropped 1.03%, while JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs declined 0.91% and 0.11%.
Bank of America said Wednesday evening that it more than quadrupled what it paid its CEO Brian Moynihan in 2011 but added that it's likely to curtail Moynihan's pay this year, reflecting the company's rocky performance in 2011.
Meanwhile, Best Buy plunged 7.02% after the electronics chain posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results and added it will close 50 stores and cut 400 positions.
Mosaic also tumbled 2.16% after the fertilizer maker posted a sharp decline in earnings, hurt by lower potash fertilizer sales and higher costs in phosphate fertilizer.
On the upside, gene sequencing company Illumina surged 3.93% after Roche Holding hiked its cash bid for the U.S. firm to USD6.7 billion, as the Swiss drug maker sought to win over shareholders before Illumina's annual meeting next month.
Shares in Red Hat Inc. also surged 9.69% after the company’s quarterly profit beat expectations for the fifth straight quarter on higher subscription revenue. The business software maker also said it will buy back USD300 million of its shares.
Other stocks in focus included Research In Motion, scheduled to post earnings after-the-bell.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply lower. The EURO STOXX 50 plummeted 1.73%, France’s CAC 40 plunged 1.24%, Germany's DAX tumbled 1.80%, while Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 1.23%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.55%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.7%.
Later in the day, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was also due to speak.