US: Wall Street falls as oil, tech losses outweigh retail cheer

[BENGALURU] Wall Street indexes fell on Thursday as losses in heavyweight technology and oil stocks offset cheer over strong retail sales indicating economic resilience.

The Dow Jones fell the least among its peers, as economically sensitive sectors such as financials and transport stocks were boosted by data showing retail sales unexpectedly rose in August.

Consumer-exposed stocks such as Home Depot and Nike rose.

But losses in technology stocks weighed on all three major indexes, while energy stocks tumbled 1.1 per cent after a recent rally, with oil prices retreating.

At 10.03 am ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 131.39 points, or 0.38 per cent , to 34,683.00; the S&P 500 lost 23.10 points, or 0.52 per cent, to 4,457.60; and the Nasdaq Composite lost 91.39 points, or 0.60 per cent, to 15,070.13.

All three indexes had marked strong gains on Wednesday, with cyclical stocks benefiting the most from a rally in oil prices and data suggesting that factory activity growth remained steady in the United States.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.9-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by about a 1.8-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted six new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 46 new highs and 61 new lows.

REUTERS