Dow at risk of snapping a 5-day rally as consumer-staples, financials slide
U.S. stocks opened lower Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average on the verge of ending a multisession rally as investors focused on quarterly earnings and fresh developments in disputes between the U.S. and its global trade partners. The Dow was down nearly 60 points, or 0.2%, at 25,140, the S&P 500 index was off 0.2% at 2,810, with a decline of at least 0.4% in financials and consumer-staples sectors. The technology-laden Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.1% at 7,846, but not far off its record high set on Tuesday. President Trump has heightened tensions over trade between its partners in North America, Europe and Asia after saying that a failure to negotiate “something fair” with European and North American allies could lead to “tremendous retribution,” referring to possible tariffs of 20% to 25% on automobile imports. On the economic front, initial jobless claims fell by 8,000 in the latest week, dropping to their lowest level since late 1969. In corporate news, Comcast Corp. shares rose after it said it would not pursue the acquisition of assets from 21st Century Fox , instead focusing its attention on Sky. Separately, Philip Morris International Inc. offered a full-year profit outlook that was below analyst expectations. Shares of the company were trading 6.4% lower.