By Victor Reklaitis and Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch Retail,
energy stocks also in spotlight
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks mostly edged lower
Thursday, with analysts blaming the slide on the European Central
Bank signaling that it will wait until next year before considering
additional stimulus measures.
The S&P 500 (SPX) was last down 5 points, or 0.2%, to 2,069,
while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) shed 62 points, or
0.3%, to 17,851. The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) bucked the negative
trend, edging up 2 points, or less than 0.1%, to 4,776.
European stocks also were in the red, with Germany's DAX index
erasing gains.
"Speculation that ECB President Draghi would ride in and save
the day was running so high this morning that the Dax touched an
all-time high just before the press conference started," said Colin
Cieszynski, chief market strategist at CMC Markets. "Attitudes
quickly reversed course," he added.
Thursday's retreat comes after both the S&P 500 and the Dow
bagged record closes on Wednesday.
Draghi not dovish enough: The ECB kept its key rates unchanged,
and then Draghi said the central bank is prepared to implement more
easing next year if necessary. U.S. stock futures dipped into
negative territory as he spoke, suggesting he didn't sound as
dovish as some traders expected. There had been hopes that he would
hint at full-scale quantitative easing that would come soon. Check
out our live blog of the ECB news conference
In U.S. economic news, weekly jobless claims fell to 297,000,
basically in line with forecasts for 298,000. This figure comes
ahead of Friday's monthly jobs report, a big event that might give
some investors a reason to sit on the sidelines Thursday. Why
economists say 400,000 jobs could be added
Energy, retail in focus: Energy fared worst among the S&P
500's 10 sectors, as oil prices (CLF5) once again dropped.
Meanwhile, Sears Holding Corp. (SHLD) shares were down after the
ailing retailer reported a wider third-quarter net loss on lower
revenue. Barnes & Noble Inc.(BKS) also fell after its quarterly
release, while Kroger Co. (KR) gained ground.(Read more in
MarketWatch's Movers & Shakers column
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/sears-barnes-noble-dollar-general-earnings-in-focus-2014-12-04.)
Chinese stocks see best day in two years: The dollar(EURUSD)
mostly retreated against major rivals, while gold(GCG5) was
slightly lower.
Asian stocks rallied on the heels of U.S. gains on Wednesday.
China's Shanghai Composite soared 4.3%, the biggest rise in two
years, as retail investors piled in and banks upgraded prospects
for China's economy. Japan's Nikkei 225 index added 0.9%.
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires