The stock exchanges in New York closed with losses again on Thursday. Concerns about an economic recession in the United States continued to preoccupy investors on Wall Street. That fear led to sharp price drops a day earlier after disappointing figures on US retail sales, among other things.
The Dow Jones index was 0.8 percent lower at 33,044.56 points. The broad S&P 500 fell 0.8 percent to 3898.85 points and the technology gauge Nasdaq lost 1 percent to 10,852.27 points.
The focus was, among other things, on weekly unemployment claims in the US. They turned out lower than expected. This indicates strength in the labor market, which means that the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, has more room to continue raising interest rates against high inflation. Fed director Lael Brainard said that interest rates must remain high for the time being to further cool inflation.
Procter & Gamble (minus 2.7 percent) could count on interest among the companies. The consumer goods group, known for brands such as Pampers, Gillette, Head & Shoulders and Ariel, saw turnover and profit fall last quarter, despite strong price increases.
Cruise company Norwegian Cruise Line went down 4.8 percent. The company announced in a report to the stock exchange watchdog SEC that it would suffer a loss in the fourth quarter and the whole of 2022.
Alcoa lost 7.4 percent. The aluminum producer faced challenging market conditions last quarter, including higher costs for energy and materials, and suffered more losses than expected. Roblox fell 6 percent. Morgan Stanley analysts downgraded the video game developer’s rating to sell.
Netflix ended up more than 3 percent in the red. The streaming service announced its fourth-quarter results after the closing bell. In the third quarter, Netflix saw subscriber growth return after two quarters in a row of declines.
The euro was worth $1.0833, against $1.0804 at the close of European stock exchange trading. A barrel of US oil became 1.2 percent more expensive at $ 80.42. Brent oil rose 1.4 percent in price to $ 86.19 a barrel.
