The S&P 500 dipped on Thursday, continuing its volatile run in March as the rally to record highs took a pause with investors reassessing the growth picture.
The Dow Jones Industrials withered 223.47 points to 32,196.59,
The S&P 500 faltered 29.08 points to 3,860.06. The S&P 500 energy sector slid more than 2%.
The NASDAQ Composite dropped 171.16 points, or 1.3%, to 12,790.73, as Big Tech came under pressure again.
The three major averages are all on track to post a losing week, with the S&P 500 and the Dow falling 1% each. The NASDAQ has fallen more than 2% this week.
The market weakness came as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted at one day starting to remove the stimulus that has boosted the market during the pandemic.
Investors pored over a better-than-expected reading on weekly jobless claims. The U.S. Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 684,000 for the week ended March 20, lower than an estimate of 735,000 from economists surveyed by Dow Jones.
Prices for 10-Year Treasurys fell, hoisting yields back to Wednesday’s 1.61%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices faded $3.40 to $57.78 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices recovered $2.70 to $1,735.9 0.