WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Thursday but largely maintained a negative bias. The major averages have moved to the downside in recent trading, with the S&P 500 moving lower for the fifth straight session.
Currently, the major averages are off their lows of the session but still in negative territory. The Dow is down 159.96 points or 0.4 percent at 44,778.35, the Nasdaq is down 64.25 points or 0.3 percent at 21,108.61 and the S&P 500 is down 21.41 points or 0.3 percent at 6,374.37.
The weakness on Wall Street may reflect lingering uncertainty about the outlook for interest rates ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's highly anticipated speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium on Friday.
Powell's remarks could have a significant impact on the outlook for rates ahead of the Fed's next monetary policy meeting in September.
'Powell is likely to keep his cards close to his vest, emphasize that the Fed cares very much about their dual mandate and explain that they are data dependent and will need to see the jobs report (9/5) and the two inflation reports (9/10-9/11) before they can make a determination whether or not to cut interest rates on September 17th,' said Chris Zaccarelli, Chief Investment Officer for Northlight Asset Management.
Ahead of Powell's speech, CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating a 73.3 percent chance the Fed will lower rates by a quarter point next month, down from 92.1 percent a week ago.
In an interview with CNBC, Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid expressed doubt about lowering interest rates in September, saying the central bank needs to 'have very definitive data to be moving that policy rate.'
'In September, we'll get around tables and we'll collaborate and we'll figure it out, but yeah, I think there's a lot to be said between now and September,' he added.
A notable decrease by shares of Walmart (WMT) has also generated some negative sentiment, with the retail giant tumbling by 4.0 percent after reporting weaker than expected second quarter earnings.
On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by much more than expected in the week ended August 16th.
The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 235,000, an increase of 11,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 224,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 225,000.
Sector News
Housing stocks have shown a significant move to the downside despite a report showing an unexpected rebound by existing home sales in July, with the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index falling by 1.4 percent.
The steep drop by shares of Walmart is also weighing on the retail sector, dragging the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index down by 1.2 percent.
Airline stocks are also seeing considerable weakness on the day, while gold stocks moved notable higher despite a modest decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index slid by 0.7 percent, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index jumped by 1.1 percent.
The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index is just above the unchanged line and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved to the downside as traders look ahead to Powell's speech. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 4.3 basis points at 4.339 percent.
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